MCDONALD, Pa. (AP) — A southwestern Pennsylvania man has been jailed on charges he posted Facebook comments encouraging people to kill police the same day a man fatally shot two New York City officers.
The (Washington) Observer-Reporter (https://bit.ly/1xsDnEL) says Steven Drake Jr. was arrested Wednesday in McDonald. Police there were alerted to the Dec. 20 posts by officers in a nearby community.
Among the comments Drake allegedly posted were, “The police brought this on themselves! I say kill them all! Enough is enough.”
The 29-year-old from Midway faces a preliminary hearing Jan. 6 on charges including terroristic threats and disorderly conduct. Online court records don’t list an attorney for him.
Police say Drake acknowledged making the posts, which also referenced the recent police killings of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner in New York City.
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Information from: Observer-Reporter, https://www.observer-reporter.com
Woman’s body found near Pittsburgh sewage plant
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh police are investigating the death of a woman whose body was pulled from the Ohio River near a sewage treatment plant.
The Allegheny County medical examiner’s office says Pittsburgh River Rescue was dispatched to an area of the river near the McKees Rocks Bridge about 1:30 p.m. Monday only to find the body of the woman.
The woman’s name was not immediately released.
Her body was recovered near the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority plant.
Her cause of death was not immediately clear.
Police: Toilet paper links man to heist attempt
Uniontown police say 29-year-old Eric Frey tried to rob Michael Maria’s Pizza on Saturday by handing an employee a note written on toilet paper that read: “I have a gun. Give me $300.”
Police arrived before Frey could leave because an employee hit a panic button.
Frey told officers he was forced to commit the robbery by a large, bearded man with a gun who accosted him in a nearby alley.
But police say a search of Frey’s apartment wiped out that explanation: That’s where they say they found a newly opened roll of toilet paper with the pen impression from Frey’s note on an outer sheet.
Online court records don’t list an attorney for Frey.
Cops: Pennsylvania homeowner shoots, kills robber
PITTSBURGH (AP) – A 74-year-old western Pennsylvania man fatally shot one of two men armed with ax handles who baited him out of his home in an attempt to rob him, police said.
Nicholas Dziyak fatally shot 42-year-old Robert West about 8:40 p.m. Sunday in West Pike Run Township, according to Trooper Matthew Jardine, spokesman for the barracks in Washington, Pennsylvania. The shooting took place in Washington County, about 30 miles south of Pittsburgh.
A second alleged attacker, Andrew Graseck, 18, of Carmichaels, was jailed after he was unable to post $50,000 bond on charges including robbery and aggravated assault.
Police contend West and Graseck cut the power to Dziyak’s rural property before luring him outside, where they planned to rob him over a past business dispute. The men knocked on Dziyak’s door, and then hid in the dark outside before attacking Dziyak after he went outside to look around and was returning to his home, police said.
Jardine wouldn’t detail the business dispute on Monday, except to say it didn’t involve illegal activity. He said, while the investigation is ongoing, it was his understanding that it was a prior business dispute, not a drug dispute.
Jardine said Graseck and West “baited (Dziyak) out of his house and attacked him” before Dziyak shot at both men, mortally wounding West. Graseck was arrested after a short chase, which occurred after he ran to a nearby home and asked the resident to call 911.
Dziyak was treated for injuries at Mon Valley Hospital, where officials could not immediately detail his condition. He was expected to survive, but Jardine said he had no other information about the man’s condition.
District Attorney Eugene Vittone will review the shooting to determine whether it was justified. Dziyak has not been charged with a crime and won’t be if the prosecutor determines the shooting was warranted.
“He’ll make the determination if it was a Castle Doctrine incident or a self-defense incident,” Jardine said of the DA. “He’ll be the one to decide whether anyone gets charged with the shooting in this incident.”
Vittone didn’t immediately respond to a call and email seeking comment. Dziyak’s home telephone is unlisted.
Graseck faces a preliminary hearing Jan. 8.
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