The first week of December has been extremely busy for state police working out of the Indiana barracks. This afternoon they announced that troopers broke up a drug operation in Ernest yesterday involving at least five people.
State troopers went to 265 Store Hill Road at 4:20 yesterday afternoon to serve a search warrant for a wanted 32-year-old Creekside man they believed was at the home. Entering the home, they took the man into custody without incident, but they also observed a shotgun, empty stamp bags, and suspected drugs in plain view. After applying for and being granted a second search warrant, they found a bag of suspected heroin and crack cocaine behind a fuel tank in the basement.
In all they seized 208 stamp bags of suspected heroin, nine bags containing a total of 28 grams of crack cocaine, the shotgun, several cell phones, and an undisclosed amount of money.
The five suspects in the home at the time are not publicly identified. They are all facing felony drug-related charges. They are two 32-year-old men from Creekside, a 34-year-old woman from Ernest, and two Allegheny County men: a 25-year-old from Duquesne and a 28-year-old from Pittsburgh.
State police strongly encourage anyone with information related to suspected illegal drug activity to notify them or their local law enforcement agency. Anonymous reports may also be made via the toll-free, 24-hour Drug Trafficking Tip Line at 1-877-PA-NODRUGS.
