Police Beat Dec. 14
CANONSBURG
Forgery charges: Scott Elliot Payne, 30, of 1208 Wood St., Pittsburgh, was charged by Canonsburg police with two counts of forgery, four counts of theft and two counts of bad checks after he allegedly cashed two bad checks at Shop ‘n Save on West Pike Street in Canonsburg earlier this year. Police said the first check for $581 was cashed July 28 and the second for $424 on Aug. 16. Payne was arraigned by District Judge David Mark Tuesday and was placed in Washington County jail on $10,000 bond. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Jan. 30.
DONORA
Man jailed: Justin David Key, 28, of 516 Lincoln Ave., North Charleroi, is charged by borough police with trespassing, ethnic intimidation, harassment, disorderly conduct and public drunkenness, court records show. Police accuse Key of breaking into a residence in the 900 block of Thompson Avenue and fighting with two men while also using a sexual-orientation slur about 2 a.m. Sunday. District Judge Larry Hopkins arraigned Key Tuesday from Washington County jail, where he is detained on a probation violation.
Man charged: Darryl Crawford, 61, of 789 McKean Ave., Donora, is charged by borough police with two counts of simple assault over allegations he struck an employee of Touched by an Angel Personal Care Home, where he resides, and a man about 8:30 a.m. Dec. 6, court records indicate. District Judge Larry Hopkins issued the charges by summons Tuesday.
NORTH STRABANE
Habitual offender charge: Nicholas Raymond Cessna, 26, of 486 Donnan Ave., Washington, was charged by state police with habitual offender of driving under suspension. Police said Cessna was speeding on Interstate 79 Tuesday afternoon when he was pulled over and discovered to have a suspended license.
PETERS
Burglary charges: William J. Magnotti III, 28, of 124 Sheffield Lane, McMurray, was charged by Peters Township police with burglary and receiving stolen property after he allegedly stole $64,000 worth of jewelry from his grandmother’s home on Shoreline Drive in Peters Township between Oct. 9 and Nov. 18. Police said t when the woman reported her jewelry missing Nov. 18, police investigated and found her grandson sold several pieces of jewelry to a pawn shop in Pittsburgh Nov. 11. Police said Magnotti admitted to them he entered his grandmother’s home when she was not there. Police said the woman was able to get some of her belongings back, but has still suffered the loss of $11,015 in jewelry. Magnotti was arraigned Tuesday by District Judge James Ellis and released on his own recognizance. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Dec. 19.
ROSTRAVER
Drug charges: Jesse James Hannen, 20, of 9 Birch St., Charleroi, was charged by Rostraver police with possession of marijuana following an incident Dec. 8 at a CVS store on Rostraver Road.
Drug charges: Mark Anthony Stout, 35, of 223 Lily St., Lowber, was charged by Rostraver police with possession of drug paraphernalia following an incident at Walmart in Belle Vernon Dec. 4.
Retail theft charge: David Gerald Delgado, 40, of 2018 Darr St., Cardale, was charged by Rostraver police with retail theft and receiving stolen property following an incident at Walmart in Belle Vernon Dec. 7.
Assault charges: Jeffrey Allen Weaver, 49, of State Route 51, South Belle Vernon, was charged by Rostraver police with simple assault and recklessly endangering another person following a Dec. 9 incident at a chiropractic clinic down the street from his residence.
Terroristic threats charge: Justin Jewell, 47, of 639 Rosewood St., Belle Vernon, was charged by Rostraver police with terroristic threats and resisting arrest following an incident at his residence Sunday evening.
Domestic charges: Timothy Patrick Bukowski, 50, of 116 Kimberly Court, Belle Vernon, was charged by Rostraver police with terroristic threats, simple assault and recklessly endangering another person following a domestic incident at his residence Sunday night.
SMITH
DUI, drug charges: Jared Allan Vraninin, 21, of 427 W. Pittsburgh St., Burgettstown, was charged by Smith Township police with driving under the influence of drugs, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia, prohibited offensive weapons and two summary traffic violations following a traffic stop at Bulger Candor and Bulger Block roads Nov. 25. Police said when they made the traffic stop, they could smell marijuana in the car, which Vraninin was driving. While searching the vehicle, police said they found marijuana, several items of drug paraphernalia and a set of metal knuckles, according to the criminal complaint. Police said tests showed Vraninin had marijuana and cocaine in his system.
Assault charges: Anthony James Mickey, 26, of 104 Elizabeth St., Slovan, was charged by Smith Township police with simple assault, harassment and disorderly conduct after he allegedly bit his neighbor’s finger and punched him in the face early Monday morning. A man was walking his dog in a public alley near Mickey’s house about 12:30 a.m. when Mickey came out of his residence yelling at the man for “trespassing on his property,” the criminal complaint said. The two men began to fight, and Mickey allegedly punched the neighbor in the face, bloodying his nose, and bit his finger, drawing blood.
SOUTH STRABANE
Crash charges: Brian David Guta, 49, of 312 Hornhead Road, Westland, was charged by South Strabane Township police with accident involving damage and six summary traffic violations following a three-vehicle, hit-and-run crash Saturday evening at state Route 19 and Strabane Square. Police said Guta crashed into a vehicle stopped at a red light, which then struck the vehicle in front of it. Police said Guta fled.
Theft charge: Alexis Nickole Williams, 28, of 121 Hall Ave., Washington, was charged by South Strabane Township police with theft after she allegedly stole “Kohl’s Cash” from her Pathways clients in October. Police said Williams was employed by Pathways of Southwestern Pennsylvania and was allowed to take her “special needs” clients to Kohl’s in South Strabane to make purchases for them, according to the criminal complaint. As a result of their purchases, the clients earned $710 in store credit, which Williams allegedly kept and used for herself, the criminal complaint said. Police said when Pathways became aware of Williams’ actions, they terminated her employment and reimbursed their clients.
Unauthorized use charge: Joseph A. Marie III, 29, of 180 Old Scales Road, Washington, was charged by South Strabane Township police with unauthorized use of an access device. Marie, an assistant store manager at Walmart at Trinity Point, allegedly used a $75 gift card that was meant for a customer. Police said the numbers of the gift card were given to a customer from Ohio whose car had been damaged in the parking lot in September. Police said Marie stored the card in the store’s accounting office, but in October and November used it to buy cigarettes, a drink and automotive supplies.
WASHINGTON
Theft reported: A resident reported to Washington police a woman knocked on his door Tuesday afternoon and asked to use his phone. The man told police he dropped his phone, and the woman picked it up and walked away with it.
Theft: A Henderson Avenue resident reported that UPS delivered an Xbox to his apartment but gave it to an unknown person. The resident never received the Xbox and reported it stolen to Washington police.