Police Log, 3/22/2024
NORTHERN SCHUYLKILL – The following is a collection of police incidents reported by local law enforcement agencies in our region.
Reckless Endangerment, Simple Assault
GIRARDVILLE – A Girardville man is facing reckless endangerment charges after State Police at Frackville say he fired shots into the air after an argument last year.
Troopers filed charges Tuesday against Edwin Cope, 42, of Upper Railroad Street.
According to court documents, troopers were called to the area of 145 North Second Street around 2:30am May 7.
Troopers said Cope was in an argument with another man outside the Guntown Pub after the bar closed. The man said he told Cope to go home because he was drunk and became irate.
Cope then left with his girlfriend and fired multiple gunshots into the air. Another witness said he saw Cope fire the shots, and troopers found two spent casings at the scene.
His girlfriend was interviewed and said she may have heard a gunshot, but told police, “its Girardville, you hear gunshots all the time.”
Cope is facing multiple counts of reckless endangerment and simple assault.
A preliminary hearing is set for April 17.
Aggravated Assault
FRACKVILLE – A Hazle Township man is in Schuylkill County Prison after Frackville Police say he assaulted his pregnant girlfriend.
Yaniel Arriaga-Ceballos, 22, of Four Seasons Drive, is facing felony aggravated assault and misdemeanor simple assault charges.
According to the criminal complaint filed by Frackville Police Patrolman Brian Reno, police were called to the 400 block of South Lehigh Street for a reported domestic Monday around 2pm.
Arriaga-Ceballos was standing in the parking lot of Anthony’s Pizza and told police he was involved in a domestic with his girlfriend and the mother of his children.
His girlfriend was bleeding from her right eye and had blood around her face and neck when police spoke to her, Reno wrote. She said that Arriaga-Ceballos assaulted her and struck her in the stomach. She is seven months pregnant with his child.
Arriaga-Ceballos was arraigned and committed to Schuylkill County Prison, unable to post $50,000 cash bail.
A preliminary hearing is set for March 27.
Resisting Arrest
GIRARDVILLE – A Girardville man is in Schuylkill County Prison on resisting arrest and disorderly conduct charges after State Police at Frackville said he struggled with troopers when they tried to take him into custody on a warrant.
Jason Russell, 37, of West Main Street, was charged Thursday by Trooper Ryan Sverchek.
According to court paperwork, troopers were called to his home to speak with him. It was not noted why they were called, but troopers knew he had an active arrest warrant.
Troopers asked Russell to leave the house, which he did, and then asked him to accompany them to the patrol car.
At that point, he became defensive and questioned troopers intentions, asking “What are you trying to lock me up or something?” Sverchek wrote.
The trooper then told Russell he had an active warrant and attempted to take him into custody. A struggle ensued and Sverchek wrote that they had to use “an intense amount of force” to get his hands behind his back.
Once cuffed, Russell began to yell and scream at a level “that was so loud, numerous citizens of Girardville Borough began to exit their residences to investigate the commotion.”
Russell was arraigned and committed to Schuylkill County Prison, unable to post 10% of $10,000 cash bail.
A preliminary hearing is set for April 3.
Theft
ALTAMONT – A Delano man is facing theft and prowling charges after State Police at Frackville said he swiped a former co-worker’s grandfather’s boat battery, claiming it was a joke.
Garett Steibler, 18, of Lakeside Avenue, was charged by Trooper John Szczyglak Thursday for the incident from last July.
According to court documents, police were called to a home in the 200 block of South Wylam Street in the Altamont section of West Mahanoy Township around 6:30am July 31 for a reported theft.
The victim reported that he wakes up around 4am each day for work and, when he went onto his back deck, he noticed a battery for his boat was no longer on the deck.
He reviewed security camera footage, which showed a young man, later identified as Steibler, taking the battery and fleeing.
Steibler was an associate and former coworker of the victim’s grandson and had previously visited the home. The grandson, however, was told to no longer bring Steibler around.
Troopers interviewed the grandson and identified the suspect as Steibler. When confronted about the theft, troopers said Steibler told the grandson that he took the battery as a “joke.”
He is facing misdemeanor theft, prowling at night, and trespass charges.
A preliminary hearing is set for April 24.
Vehicle Accident, Careless Driving
RYAN TOWNSHIP – A McAdoo man was cited for careless driving after a crash on Interstate 81 Sunday afternoon.
The crash happened just after 5pm on Interstate 81 South in Ryan Township.
State Police at Frackville said Joshua Scholl, 20, of McAdoo, was headed south on the interstate in a 2017 Jeep Cherokee when he rear-ended a 2022 Subaru Impreza while he was changing lanes.
The Subaru was driven by Yonah Wasik, 23, of Harveys Lake.
Witnesses said Scholl was weaving in and out of lanes in an unsafe manner.
Both vehicles were disabled, and both drivers were wearing their seatbelts and were uninjured.
Scholl was cited for careless driving.
Vehicle Accident
MAHANOY TOWNSHIP – A York County man was cited for his role in a crash on Interstate 81 Tuesday afternoon.
The crash happened around 2:45pm on I-81 south at milemarker 130, just south of the Mahanoy City exit.
State Police at Frackville said Brock Flemmens, 29, of Spring Grove, entered the interstate in a 2023 Ford F-150.
He was headed south in the right lane at about 45 miles per hour when troopers said he moved into the left lane without regard to other traffic.
He struck the rear bumper of a 2018 Ford Fiesta, driven by Jeffrey Herman, 29, of Freeland, before continuing across the center median, striking a guiderail on the northbound side of the highway.
Flemmens was taken to a Pottsville hospital for a medical evaluation and his truck was towed from the scene.
Herman was not injured and his vehicle was able to be driven from the scene.
Firefighters from Ryan Township, Delano Township, and Frackville responded to the scene along with Ryan Township EMS.
Burglary
RINGTOWN – Barking dogs thwarted a burglary in the valley last month, State Police at Frackville said this week.
Troopers said they were called to a home on West Main Street around 3am on Feb. 6.
Unknown actors gained entry to the home via a a rear door and, once inside, the victim’s dogs began barking and the burglars fled through a basement door.
Anyone with information should call State Police at Frackville at 570-874-5300.
Criminal Mischief
FRACKVILLE – State Police at Frackville are seeking whoever smashed the window of the press box at Memorial Field here.
Troopers said it happened sometime between March 14 and 16.
The window was valued at $100.
Anyone with information should contact State Police at Frackville at 570-874-5300.
Vehicle Accident
BARNESVILLE – A Hazleton man was cited after State Police at Frackville said he ran off the road, into someone’s yard and driveway, and struck their car earlier this month.
Troopers said the crash happened around 12:30pm at 1553 Barnesville Drive in Ryan Township.
Perez Viveros, 27, of Hazleton, was headed east on Route 54 “at an unsafe speed” in a 2005 Ford Five Hundred.
He lost control of the vehicle, left the roadway, travelled through the front yard of a home, and struck a parked 2021 Honda Ridgeline in a driveway.
No injuries were reported, but Viveros was cited for the crash.
Harassment
EAST McADOO HEIGHTS – Two people from McAdoo are facing harassment citations after State Police at Frackville said a custody exchange turned into a shoving match.
Troopers said it happened around 5pm on March 9 on Bridge Street in Kline Township.
During a child custody exchange, troopers said the ex-boyfriend and mother — Justin Nieves, 30, and Cindy Kovac, 66, both of McAdoo — shoved a 30-year-old Hudson woman.
The two were cited for harassment Tuesday.
Criminal Mischief
McADOO – State Police at Frackville are seeking whoever through a blunt object through the driver’s side front window of a 2023 Kia here earlier this month.
Troopers said they were called around 5:30pm March 7 when someone shattered the window on South Hancock Street.
Anyone with information should call troopers at 570-874-5300.
Disorderly Conduct
KULPMONT – A Kulpmont woman was cited by State Police at Stonington for an incident earlier this month.
Troopers said Betty June Libby, of Kulpmont, is accused of contacting 911 on several occasions, including three times on March 9, making up false allegations against an ex-boyfriend.
She has yet to enter a plea.
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