Apr 20, 2017 2 min read

An Allegheny County teen was arrested by Cecil Township police early Thursday on several charges after a tow truck driver called 911 over concerns he and his passenger were intoxicated.

Matthew Frederick Bertges, 19, of Carnegie called for a tow truck about 2 a.m. after his vehicle broke down in the 700 block of Morganza Road near Henderson Drive. When police talked with Bertges, his eyes were bloodshot and glassy. He also was slurring his speech and was nodding off, police said. Bertges reportedly told police he had used heroin and marijuana as well as a prescription sleep aid.

Police searched the vehicle and found a pistol under the driver’s seat. Bertges at first told police he did not know who owned the gun, but later reportedly told police he stole the gun from his landlord’s garage.

Bertges’ passenger was asked to get out of the vehicle. The passenger, a 20-year-old Cecil Township man, was twice asked to remove his hands from his pockets before police removed them. Inside his pockets, police found a bottle containing 10 pills police said are an antipsychotic medication. He told police the pills were prescribed to him. Police gave him 10 days to bring the prescription to the station or face a charge of possession of a controlled substance.

Bertges was arraigned before District Judge Ethan Ward on charges of persons not to carry a firearm, carrying a firearm without a license, receiving stolen property and driving under the influence of a controlled substance. He was placed in Washington County jail on $50,000 bond. He is scheduled for a May 4 preliminary hearing before District Judge Traci McDonald.