ĢƵ

close

One person in custody after vehicle stolen and crashed, shots fired

By Alyssa Choiniere achoiniere@heraldstandard.Com 3 min read
1 / 4

John F. Brothers | ĢƵ

John F. Brothers | ĢƵ Heavily armed state police gather outside a Bullskin Township house and search for possible suspects after reports of shots fire in the area. The incident is alleged to be related to an earlier incident where a stolen vehicle crashed into a neighboring house.

2 / 4

John F. Brothers | ĢƵ

John F. Brothers | ĢƵ The occupants of this vehicle allegedly fled scene Tuesday after crashing into this Bullskin Township home on Route 982. The pick-up was reportedly stolen earlier in the day. The trucked bought fire after the crash causing some fire damage to the house. Bullskin Township firefighters assisted at he scene and state police are investigating the crash.

3 / 4

John F. Brothers | ĢƵ

The occupants of this vehicle allegedly fled the scene Tuesday after crashing into this Bullskin Township home on Route 982. The pickup was reportedly stolen earlier in the day. The truck caught fire after the crash causing some fire damage to the house. Bullskin Township firefighters assisted at he scene and state police are investigating the crash.

4 / 4

John F. Brothers | ĢƵ

State police appear to take a suspect in custody (at front of police car) at the Sheetz store in Bullskin Township after a series of incidents Tuesday involving stolen vehicles, a crash into a house and a possible shooting.

One person was taken into custody at a Bullskin Township Sheetz by state police after a stolen truck crashed into a nearby house, two additional vehicle theft attempts were reported and shots were fired, officials said.

Dozens of state police vehicles and heavily armed troopers surrounded two houses in the 200 block of Pleasant Valley Road Tuesday night. At about 3:30 p.m., a truck that was reported stolen from Connellsville crashed into a house at 231 Pleasant Valley Road during heavy rainfall, according to state police.

At 6:30 p.m., an attempted vehicle theft was reported at 375 Pleasant Valley Road where the driver crashed through garage doors, officials said. A third vehicle theft attempt was reported at a nearby house. Shots were fired, according to Fayette County 911, but it was unclear whether anyone was hit.

At about 8:15 p.m., a man was taken into custody at Sheetz at the intersection of Pleasant Valley Road and U.S. 119 after paying for three orders of mozzarella cheese sticks.

Manager Joe Lane said he called police when he observed the man.

“His hand was cut up really bad,” he said. “His money was all wet.”

State police took the man into custody in the Sheetz parking lot.

“Things are happening around here all the time,” Lane said with a laugh. “Nothing new here.”

It was unclear whether police were seeking additional suspects. Fayette County 911 said an ambulance was meeting the suspect at the barracks for evaluation.

The stolen truck hit a fence and utility pole before plowing into the corner of the Pleasant Valley Road house and bursting into flames, causing exterior damage to the residence, according to Bullskin Township Fire Chief Kyle Quinn.

A pile of cinder blocks covered the front of the 2012 Chevrolet Silverado, and siding was melted around the impact site.

State police said the vehicle was reported stolen from Connellsville but was not involved in a police pursuit. Police expected any vehicle occupants would have suffered injuries.

Ebony Floyd said the first vehicle was stolen from her Connellsville house and belonged to Seth Fiano, who bought the vehicle in October. She said he had just come home when someone stole the truck. Floyd said Connellsville police were taking their statements when they heard the vehicle had crashed.

She said she and Fiano work hard, and was disgusted that someone would steal the truck.

“ItĢƵ sad. ItĢƵ heartbreaking,” she said. “This just sickens me.”

CUSTOMER LOGIN

If you have an account and are registered for online access, sign in with your email address and password below.

NEW CUSTOMERS/UNREGISTERED ACCOUNTS

Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe, click the Subscribe button below.

Starting at $4.79/week.