Pittsburgh man arrested after traffic stop on I-70
A Pittsburgh man was arrested early Wednesday after he reportedly ran from state police during a traffic stop on Interstate 70 west near the north junction with Interstate 79 in South Strabane Township.
Debar Jamal Yarbrough, 19, also faces drug charges after he was found with a large bag of suspected marijuana. When police stopped the car, they could smell a strong odor of marijuana. The woman who was driving the car denied smoking marijuana but Yarbrough admitted to smoking it earlier. The trooper spotted a brown bag on the floor between Yarbrough’s feet.
The trooper went back to his cruiser and asked for assistance. As he started to check to see if any of the occupants of the car was wanted, Trooper Matthew Terkay saw Yarbrough open the passenger door and run into a wooded area that parallels the highway. Yarbrough was trying to climb a chain-link fence. The brown bag that had been on the floor with him in the car had been tossed over the fence in some weeds.
Another trooper arrived to assist in putting Yarbrough in Terkay’s cruiser. Police located the paper bag and found it contained a large plastic bag of suspected marijuana along with paraphernalia. Police also found more than $1,500 in Yarbrough’s wallet.
Yarbrough was arraigned before District Judge Robert Redlinger on charges of possession with intent to deliver marijuana, possession of paraphernalia, flight to avoid apprehension and resisting arrest. He was placed in Washington County Jail on $15,000 bond. He is scheduled for a June 22 hearing before District Judge Jay Weller.