Thursday, December 20, 2012
District attorney Eugene A. Vittone lauded the effort.
District Attorney Eugene A. Vittone announced Wednesday that the Washington County District Attorney’s Drug Task Force executed arrests on those suspected of dealing drugs and other controlled substances. Members of the Drug Task Force were aided by members of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Washington County Adult Probation Office and the City of Washington Police Department. A total of 52 arrest warrants were signed for suspected drug dealers in the county. These defendants represent many different communities throughout the county with a significant concentration in the City of Washington. Vittone stated that, “This arrest sweep represents a major milestone in the Drug Task Force’s year-long …
Saturday, November 17, 2012
'The message is clear. I will not tolerate illegal drug activity occurring in bars in our communities and I will take all steps available to me to close any bars that tolerate this illegal activity,' the district attorney said.
A search warrant was executed Friday night at the J & J Hotel and Bar on Main Street in Marianna—one done through a cooperative law enforcement investigative effort involving the Washington County District Attorneys Drug Task Force, Pennsylvania State Police, Washington County Adult Probation, Pennsylvania State Parole Agents, Greene County Adult Probation and PSP-Liquor Control Enforcement—culminated in four arrests. “The J & J bar has been the subject of numerous citizen complaints which lead to the start of this undercover operation,” Eugene A. Vittone, Washington County District Attorney. According to a release, undercover detectives from the Drug Task Force and Pennsylvania State Police began making drug buys from several dealers in …
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Washington County District Attorney Eugene Vittone thanked Gov. Tom Corbett recently for signing several pieces of legislation into law—ones he said will help law enforcement efforts, especially those regarding heroin.
Washington County District Attorney Eugene A. Vittone thanked Gov. Tom Corbett recently for signing several bills into law that he said will help local law enforcement catch up with technology and criminals. “As district attorney of Washington County, keeping the law current and reflective of modern day realities is essential to public safety. These new laws will help ensure fairness and balance in the criminal justice system by keeping up with technology, criminals and remaining ever vigilant in protecting the rights of victims," Vittone said. "I am particularly thankful to see passage of a statute which provides for criminal responsibility for individuals who deal or provide a dangerous drug to someone who then dies from that drug. This …
Friday, September 28, 2012
Residents can bring their expired, unused or unwanted medications to several locations across the county Saturday—including one in Canonsburg.
Many Washington County police departments—in conjunction with the Drug Enforcement Agency—will give the public the opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs this weekend. This service—held at various locations, including one in Canonsburg—is free and anonymous. Last October, Americans turned in 377,080 pounds—188.5 tons—of prescription drugs at more than 5,300 sites operated by the DEA, and approximately 4,000 at state and local law enforcement partners' locations. In the three previous take-back events, the DEA and its partners took in almost a million pounds—nearly 500 tons—of pills, according to Washington County District Attorney Eugne …
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Vincent LoCastro, former owner of All Pro Auto Mall in Canonsburg, waived his right to a preliminary hearing on racketeering charges Wednesday.
A former owner of All Pro Auto Mall in Canonsuburg on Wednesday waived his right to a preliminary hearing on racketeering charges. In exchange, charges were withdrawn against two of Vincent LoCastro's family members who had been implicated in the alleged crimes, according to the Washington County District Attorney's Office. Racketeering and theft charges had been filed in May against LoCastro, 57, and three others. LoCastro, of 203 Spartan Dr., Bethel Park, was charged with two counts of corrupt organizations, two counts of criminal conspiracy, 18 counts of theft by unlawful taking and 18 counts of defrauding secured creditors. He waived his right to a preliminary hearing before district Judge David Mark Wednesday—sending the case to …
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
“We are not going to tolerate or allow this type of illegal activity to occur in Washington County,” the district attorney said.
Washington County District Attorney Eugene A. Vittone II announced Wednesday that the investigation continues into alleged cock fighting following a search of a Daisytown farm. While executing a search warrant there, state police in Washington retrieved 127 birds along with a large amount of cock-fighting materials that investigators believe may be related to an to an alleged cock-fighting operation in southwestern Pennsylvania. “Police report that the birds were kept within a ‘rooster yard’ in individual housing units and those units were manufactured using pickle barrels and/or 3-foot high white canvas teepees," Vittone said. "Many birds were tethered to their barrel or teepee, which is the typical practice in the cockfighting industry…
Officials are in the process of seizing 127 gaming birds, according to a spokesman with the Washington County District Attorney's Office.
State police in Washington are in the process of serving a search warrant at a location in Daisytown where officials suspect a cock-fighting ring was operating. Assistant District Attorney Joe Zupancic said Wednesday afternoon that officials also found an alleged breeding operation going on at the undisclosed location, as well. "It's ending up being bigger than we thought it would be," he said. Zupancic said that state police and District Attorney Gene Vittone would be releasing further information—and confirmed that 127 gaming birds were being seized by humane officials. Aside from members of the state police and district attorney's office, the Humane Society of the United States and the Washington County Animal Response Team also …
Saturday, July 28, 2012
The Cricket store on West Pike Street in Canonsburg had this sign on the window following a raid conducted by the District Attorney's Drug Task Force and state police earlier this week.
There's a padlock on the door at the Cricket store in Canonsburg, along with a handwritten sign reading, "Temporarily closed due to power failure. Sorry for the inconvenience." The store was one of about 12 in the county raided by members of the Washington County District Attorney's Drug Task Force and state police on Wednesday. A search warrant was issued as part of a larger effort by District Attorney Gene Vittone, the state and even federal authorities to "crack down" on designer drugs such as sythetic marijuana, which was the subject of the most recent investigation. To read more about the exectution of the warrant at the Cricket store earlier this week, click here. For more information about Vittone's "crack down," click here. To read…
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
A Canonsburg store was one of a dozen raided Wednesday.
Members of the District Attorney's Drug Task Force and Pennsylvania State Police executed a dozen search warrants Wednesday morning on local businesses as efforts continue to eliminate synthetic marijuana products and other drugs from the community. One of them was at the Cricket store on West Pike Street in Canonsburg. The search warrants were granted following controlled buys from various retail locations in recent months by state police troopers and undercover detectives from the task force. Agents have seen a rise in the use of synthetic marijuana, K2 and bath salts, as well as the undesirable side effects that accompany them, Washington County District Attorney Gene Vittone said in a release Wednesday. Users of certain synthetic …
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Washington County Common Pleas Judge Gary Gilman and others were sworn in at a ceremony Tuesday.
Chris Treloar
6:28 pm on Sunday, November 18, 2012
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