Criminal charges dismissed
In what was known at the Washington County Courthouse as the “finders, keepers” case, a judge dismissed theft and related charges that were filed against four home remodelers who two years ago came across and spent $60,000 hidden in a house in Charleroi because the rightful owner of the cash is unknown.
In December 2012, Charleroi Regional police filed charges of theft, receiving stolen property and criminal conspiracy against Richard Luketich, 30, of Fayette City; Jason F. Latchem, 45, of Monessen; Bryan Presock, 35, of 1215 McKean Ave., Charleroi; and Robert Varner, 52, of 3 Latta Hollow Road, Roscoe. They remained free on bond as the case made its way through the courts.
“We are very pleased with Judge (John) DiSalle’s ruling,” said Jack Puskar, Presock’s attorney and one of four who challenged the validity of the charges when the judge heard argument in March.
In a five-page opinion issued earlier this month, the judge noted the defendants were employed as “under-the-table” laborers for Donald Smaracheck Construction.
Smaracheck purchased an unoccupied house at 806 Meadow Ave. in February 2012 from the estate of Frank “Foxy” Dubnansky Jr., who died Dec. 2, 2010.
Between May and mid-June 2012, the four men found one or more boxes of cash hidden in a dormer on the second floor of the house. The newest of the small bills dated to the 1980s. The four did not report the find to their employer or any authority, but instead agreed to split the money equally.
Smaracheck learned of the deal and reported it to Charleroi police, who filed charges of theft, receiving stolen property, criminal conspiracy and theft of property that was lost, mislaid or delivered by mistake, just more than two years ago.
“As the court understands the undisputed facts, there is no allegation that the money had been hidden in the house by its current owner,” who was then Mr. Smaracheck, DiSalle wrote. There is no allegation that the ‘found’ money was an ill-gotten gain when it was hidden in the house, apparently many years ago. The workers were on the premises within the scope of their employment at the time and in the area where the money was kept.
The defendants asked for the criminal charges be thrown out because the cash was stashed and left behind due to “carelessness, negligence or inadvertence.”
DiSalle had to decide if the prosecution had enough evidence to warrant a trial judge to allow the case to go to a jury. The charges of receiving stolen property and theft of mislaid property were inappropriate, DiSalle ruled, writing “there is no evidence of the identity of the rightful owner of the funds from whom the defendants allegedly stole.”
Smaracheck, the judge noted, never claimed he placed the $60,000 inside the house and “finally, it is clear that the ‘true owner’ of the funds cannot be readily ascertained. While it may not be clear whether the defendants’ claim of ownership will prevail over that of the estate of Mr. Dubnansky or over the claim of Mr. Smaracheck,” this was not the issue before the court.
DiSalle said the defendants perhaps had an obligation to turn the money over to Smaracheck for safekeeping until the true owner of the funds could be ascertained and located.
If the owner remains a mystery, there may also be a claim the funds should be turned over to the state.
“What is clear, however, is that since the ownership of the funds cannot be readily ascertained, the defendants cannot be alleged to have the intent to deprive the owner of the property. Thus, an essential element of the theft crimes charged is missing, and the defendants should not be charged with criminal offenses,” DiSalle wrote in dismissing all counts.
Assistant District Attorney John Paul Lewis argued there was no question a theft occurred. He declined comment on DiSalle’s decision. District Attorney Gene Vittone did not immediately return calls Tuesday.
The house in which Dubnansky lived was built in 1910, and his parents purchased it in 1925. A U.S. Marine Corps veteran who served during World War II, he worked at the Charleroi Corning Glass plant. He lived in the Meadow Avenue home with his sister, Margaret, who died before he did.
When Dubnansky died at age 85, his niece, Barbara Sigler of Pittsburgh, was named executrix of his estate. She sold the house Aug. 23, 2012, for $18,000 to Smaracheck and renovations began at 806 Meadow before summer of that year.
Smaracheck heard his four renovators happened upon the hidden cash, dividing the money among themselves and began spending it.
There is no wording in the deed that states Smaracheck was buying both the house and its contents, Puskar said. No one knows if Margaret or Frank Dubnansky – or someone else – placed the money inside the wall. Margaret Dubnansky died Aug. 21, 2004, in her home, which she owned jointly with her brother since 1956. She retired after working as an inspector for Pittsburgh Plate Glass Co. in Ford City, Armstrong County. When Margaret Dubnansky died, Frank Dubnansky inherited her estate.