SHIPPENSBURG – Shippensburg Police are investigating the armed robbery of the Sunoco on West King Street.

Police said the suspect entered the store at 92 W. King St. at 6:08 p.m. Sunday and demanded money. He appeared to have a small unknown type of weapon, according to police.

He left the store with an undisclosed amount of cash.

The suspect is described as a black male, approximately 6 feet tall, 160 to 200 pounds, wearing one glove, a black t-shirt over a gray hoodie, blue jeans and gray shoes.

Anyone with information is urged to contact police at 532-7361.

SHIPPENSBURG >> According to Shippensburg Police, Rashaad C. Schell, 23, Philadelphia was charged for theft by deception after reportedly using a credit card that wasn’t his to get a towed car back.

According to police, a 2007 Buick was stopped on Nov. 5 and its registration was suspended for no insurance and the operator was under suspension. The vehicle was towed to CDC Repair and Towing Service and Schell was told that he could only remove the vehicle if it were sold to another person or towed. 

An unknown person called the CDC saying they were Schell’s father and would pay to get the vehicle from storage and towed to Philadelphia. The credit card was approved and was towed, with Mr. Schell acknowledging the credit card receipt and signed for it.

On Nov. 26, the owner of the service was advised the credit card used for payment was illegally used by someone other than the owner.

Schell was subsequently charged.

SHIPPENSBURG >> According to Shippensburg Police, Luke Etter, 20, Newville was cited with loitering and criminal mischief on Nov. 10 following a fight.

According to police, Etter got into a fight on Britton Road and allegedly went to a Fort Street residence looking to continue the fight and police were called.

Etter reportedly kicked in the door at the above location, causing $61.16 in damage.

Etter was located at his local school address a couple houses down and could be heard on the phone but refused to answer the door to police.

SOUTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP >> A Shippensburg man was charged for a hut and run incident after he allegedly crashed twice in 15 minutes.

Ryan M. Flemming, 23, allegedly was driving south on Thornwood Road when he travelled off the west side of the roadway and allegedly struck six mailboxes in his path at 1:18 a.m. on Dec. 22, according to Pennsylvania State Police, Chambersburg.

He then allegedly fled the scene. However, Flemming then was on Clearfield Road, tried to negotiate a left curve and lost control of his vehicle causing him to travel off the road, around 1:30 a.m. on Dec. 22.

He attempted to get back on the road, but crossed over the lane and went up an embankment, then Flemming’s vehicle rolled onto it’s side and skidding on the road for a short distance. Flemming again allegedly fled the scene, but was found lying on Clearfield Road approximately two tenths of a mile away from the crash scene. He was not injured, but he was found to be driving under the influence and was charged for that and other unlisted traffic offenses.

Staff report

SOUTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP - A Pennsylvania State Police fire marshal is investigating the cause of a fire Sunday on Goodhart Road in Southampton Township, Cumberland County.

Vigilant Hose Co. Assistant Fire Chief Dan Byers said firefighters were dispatched to 254A Goodhart Rd. at 4:12 p.m. Sunday.

The home is likely a total loss, Byers said.

The cause of the fire is undetermined. A fire marshal from Pennsylvania State Police, Carlisle, was scheduled to visit the scene Monday.

The two residents were not home at the time. They declined assistance from the American Red Cross and had a place to stay, Byers said.

Firefighters had the fire under control within 15 minutes but remained on the scene for about two hours for salvage and overhaul.

Vigilant Hose Co., Cumberland Valley Hose Co., West End Fire and Rescue, South Newton Township, Penn Township, and Newburg-Hopewell fire companies, as well as Carlisle Fire and Rescue Services assisted at the scene.

SHIPPENSBURG >> According to Pennsylvania State Police, Carlisle, Timothy McIntyre, 20, Philadelphia was found to have forced entry into the Texaco Food Mart at 304 N. Earl St. on Jan. 1 around 3:56 a.m.

McIntyre reportedly took several items from the store.

SHIPPENSBURG TOWNSHIP >> Adam T. Phillippi, no age given, Shippensburg, reportedly cut the tire of a 2013 Dodge Challenger owner by a Shippensburg man on Jan. 17, according to Pennsylvania State Police, Carlisle.

Police report the vehicle was parked in Stone Ridge Commons.

SHIPPENSBURG TOWNSHIP >> Two men have been charged with robbery, assault and conspiracy among related charges after they reportedly attacked a Mifflinburg man and took his cell phone and wallet, according to Pennsylvania State Police, Carlisle.

Kenneth Brown, 18, Ardmore, and Connor Marsico, 18, Harrisburg reportedly approached the man as he was walking on North Earl Street on Feb. 1 around 1:30 a.m. and Brown struck him in the face while Marsico kicked him. 

Brown was charged with robbery, aggravated assault, simple assault, theft, conspiracy, criminal mischief and harassment.

Marsico was charged with aggravated assault, simple assault, conspiracy and harassment.

Both were taken to Cumberland County Prison pending arraignment.

By Staff Reports

SHIPPENSBURG >> Shippensburg Borough Police responded to three complaints of loud parties during the weekend.

SHIPPENSBURG >> Members of the Shippensburg Fire Department are asking residents to keep fire hydrants clear during the snow and ice.

By adopting a hydrant, or dedicating to keeping it clear, the hydrants must be cleared of snow approximately 3 feet in all directions.

With the recent snow and ice, many of the fire hydrants are not accessible for use in the event of an emergency,” said Chief Randy O’Donnell. “With area residence and business working together this will help us provide a faster response in the event of a fire. Many have already adopted a hydrant in their neighbor hood and have kept the hydrant’s clear on a regular basis.”

SHIPPENSBURG >> Kelly Weaver, 35, Shippensburg, was stopped on North Gettle Avenue and East King Street when she was witnessed operating a vehicle while her license was suspended for driving under the influence, according to Shippensburg Police.

Weaver was labeled as a habitual offender, police state, revoking her license.

She was charged with operating a motor vehicle while being labeled as a habitual offender and driving while having a license suspended for DUI.

SHIPPENSBURG >> According to Shippensburg Police, an unknown vehicle struck two legally parked cars in the 100 block of East Orange St. on Feb. 23 in between midnight and 6:45 a.m.

Witnesses report hearing a loud collision around 1:30 a.m. and evidence collected at the scene suggests the hit and run vehicle as blue in color and would have passenger side/front corner damage.

The vehicles struck were a 2006 Scion and a 1999 Volkswagen, which was disabled as a result of the accident. The owner of the VW also report that the car stereo was stolen.

Police are unsure whether or not the theft and hit and run are related.

Anyone with information may contact police at 532-7361.

By Becky Metrick

bmetrick@publicopinionnews.com @BeckyMetrickPO on Twitter

Chambersburg >> Denise and Gary Russell, Shippensburg, who were arrested in November for selling stolen military gear through their army surplus store made their $500,000 bail on Friday. The couple is scheduled to have a pre-trial conference on March 4.

When they were arrested on Nov. 11, bail was initially set for $1 million, but was reduced to $500,00 on Nov. 15, according to online court documents. On Feb. 18, the couple told the court during another bail hearing that they intended to post bail by placing various properties owned by themselves, Denise’s sister Diane Cornell, and Gary’s father Richard Reasey, as security, according to online court documents.

On Friday, the Russells were listed as posting $179,550 property bail, Reasey posted $220,000 property bail and Cornell posted $100,450 property bail.

The Russells were being investigated by the Naval Criminal Investigative Services, which found they possessed $74,897.54 worth of stolen military grade property, according to court documents.

Investigators set up a buy of the stolen property with Denise, who allegedly acknowledged that the items were stolen to their criminal informant, according to court documents. The buy was to happen at their military surplus store, Weekend Warrior, 12 W. King St., Shippensburg, where an undercover agent was able to enter the business and see much of the stolen property.

Included in the stolen items were SureFire tactical lights, Marine Corps uniform items, Army issued camouflage items and other items that are not be resold to the general public, according to court documents.

The couple also allegedly told the undercover agent that there were more items in storage in their garage and in a warehouse at their home, 207 Whitmer Road, according documents.

Multiple times during the exchange, the Russells allegedly spoke about how they had purchased stolen items and that they were looking to purchase more, according to court documents.

Both are facing charges of felony corrupt organizations, dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities, conspiracy to deal in proceeds of unlawful activities, criminal attempt of dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities, receiving stolen property, criminal attempt to receive stolen property and conspiracy to receive stolen property.

Staff writer Becky Metrick can be reached at (717) 262-4762

By Staff Reports

SHIPPENSBURG >> A Stewartstown man was arrested after allegedly stealing a forklift while drunk and running it into a chain link fence on Sunday.

A police officer was traveling in the 300 block of E. Martin Ave., when he noticed a chain link fence laying in the alley, according to Shippensburg Police.. As he approached Walters Ave., he saw a forklift dragging pieces of the fence, traveling north near the intersection of E. Burd St., and Walters Ave. When the officer pulled up behind the forklift, the driver, Frank Fisher, 21, began to flee. The officer caught Fisher at the intersection of McClay Ave. and Shamar Ave., where he was arrested and taken back to the patrol car.

While Fisher was being arrested, the forklift was still running and hit a parked car, pushing it into another.

Fisher told the officer that he went into the fenced area, found the forklift with the keys in it and he started it and drove out of the area. Fished said “he knew he really messed up this time,” according to the report.

At Carlisle Regional Hospital, where Fisher was taken to get a blood sample, Fisher allegedly told the nursing staff “apparently it’s not ok to get drunk in Shippensburg and drive a forklift.”

Fisher is charged theft by unlawful taking, defiant trespassing, unauthorized use of a vehicle, criminal mischief, driving under the influence and reckless endangerment of others, according to the report. Fisher also is facing a summary charge of driving without a license, according to online court documents.

Fisher was arrested and incarcerated at Cumberland County Jail, in lieu of $5,000 bail, which was posted Sunday, according to online court documents.

(Incident No. SP-2014-1017)

SHIPPENSBURG >> Victor Forrester, 33, was arrested after allegedly violating a protection from abuse order while drunk on Monday, after first going to the police station, according to Shippensburg Police. Forrester allegedly went to the police station saying he was drunk and that he was going to walk to the victim’s home, despite protection from abuse orders between the two. Forrester allegedly said he did not care about the orders and insisted he was going to residence, despite being told several times not to go.

Forrester then allegedly asked for a forty minute head start to “take care of a problem” according to the report, before leaving the station on foot. Forrester was found walking near the residence he was not allowed to be at, where police approached him and told him he was not allowed to make contact. The victim and some friends came out of the residence with a baseball bat, and Forrester continued to refuse to leave.

Forrester then said he was going to leave, and walked to Orky’s, where he stayed for 20 minutes. After that he allegedly attempted to return to the residence, but officers met him on the sidewalk before the house. Forrester was found to be under the influence of alcohol, and was taken to Cumberland County Booking.

Forrester was charged with public drunkenness.

(Incident No. SP-2014-1033)

SOUTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP >> A Shippensburg man was charged in a stabbing incident early Saturday in Southampton Township.

Pennsylvania State Police, Carlisle, said Robert Lee Allen III, 22, was arrested Sunday afternoon in South Middleton Township following the alleged stabbing around 12:56 a.m. Saturday on Walnut Bottom Road near Strohm Road

Police said that the victim, Joshua Miley, 26, Shippensburg, heard Allen and his girlfriend verbally arguing and tried to intervene to deescalate the situation.

Police said Allen then turned on Miley and allegedly stabbed him with a knife below the left clavicle.

Miley was flown to Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. Police did not disclose the severity of his injuries.

A Shippensburg woman is also accused of hindering Allen’s arrest.

Police allege that Samantha D. Bair, 19, Shippensburg, drove Allen from the scene of the stabbing and told police on several occasions that she didn’t know where he was, even though she was staying with him and driving him around to avoid police.

She was arrested with Allen at 226 Westminster Dr., South Middleton Township, Sunday afternoon. Police allege she also had drug paraphernalia.

Bair was placed in Cumberland County Prison awaiting arraignment.

Harrisburg >> Five Shippensburg area residents have been arrested on federal charges of drug trafficking, with three also charged in drug offenses that led to the death of 21-year-old Lurgan Township man Andrew Kyle Golter. According to a release from the U. S. States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Ashley Gries, 19, Danny Guy Forrester, 48, Michael Anthony DeCarlo, 31 Jeffrey Lynn Wright, all of Shippensburg, and Gabriel John Stouffer, 30, Newburg, were arrested and arraigned in Harrisburg on Wednesday.

Gries, Forrester, Stouffer, DeCarlo and Wright were charged by indictment on March 19, by a grand jury in Harrisburg, with the charging documents going public on Wednesday, according to the release. The documents alleged that the four were engaged in heroin trafficking in Franklin and Cumberland Counties from Oct. 2013 through March 2014, according to the release. Gries, Forrester and Stouffer are charged in the Feb. 7 death of Golter, which was ruled a heroin overdose by Franklin County Coroner Jeffrey Connor.

Forrester, DeCarlo and Wright were detained pending the trial, while Gries and Stouffer were temporarily detained, pending a hearing scheduled for April 2.

“Between 2009 and mid-2013, Franklin County had five heroin related overdose deaths, and there were 25 in Cumberland County during the same period,” Drug Enforcment Administration Special Agent in Charge David G. Dongilli said in a statement. “This is due in part to its availability and the fact that it has never been cheaper or more potent.”

Gries, Forrester and Stouffer each face a mandatory minimum of 20 years imprisonment and a statutory maximum of life imprisonment for the drug trafficking offenses, according to the release. DeCarlo and Wright face a statutory maximum of 40 years, according to the release.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Shippensburg Police Department, Pennsylvania State Police, the Cumberland County Drug Task Force, the Cumberland and Franklin Counties District Attorney’s offices and the office of the Franklin County Coroner, according to the release. The prosecuting attorney will be Assistant United States Attorney Meredith A. Taylor.

SHIPPENSBURG >> Police are looking for the man who fled after an alleged assault on Front Street earlier this month. Shippensburg Police allege that Jean Gardy Innocent, formerly of 325 E. Fort St., assaulted someone at that address on March 11 and then fled when police were summoned.

Police said the locks were changed to the apartment, but while the victim and his ex-girlfriend were at the hospital later that day, he broke into the building to get his belongings, breaking a window, door frame and lock.

He is charged with criminal mischief in connection with damaging the apartment, and police said he also has an arrest warrant for assault.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to contact police at 532-7676. Police said he used to work at the Shippensburg McDonald’s but never returned to work after the assault.

SHIPPENSBURG >> The Shippensburg Police Department, Shippensburg EMS and the Drug Enforcement Administration will be holding a drug take back event April 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Shippensburg Police Department at 60 W. Burd Street.

Expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs can be disposed free and anonymously with no questions asked.

Last October, American turned in 324 tons (over 647,000 pounds) of prescription drugs at 4,114 sites operated by the DEA and its thousands of state and local law enforcement partners. Last year’s numbers combined in its seven previous events, DEA and its partners have taken in over 3.4 million pounds, more than 1,700 tons of pills.

This initiative addresses a public safety and health issue because medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse and abuse and rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. is high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs.

DEA is in the process of approving new regulations that implement the Safe and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010, which amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow an “ultimate user” (that is a patient of the family member or pet owner) of controlled substance medications to dispose of them by delivering them to entities authorized by the Attorney General to accept them.

The Act also allows the Attorney General to authorize long term care facilities to dispose of their residents’ controlled substances in certain instances.

SHIPPENSBURG >> According to Pennsylvania State Police, Carlisle, a 16-year-old juvenile male from Chambersburg was charged on March 29 after he reportedly threatened people in Shippensburg by waving a fake gun around.

Police report he had an airsoft replica modeled to look like a .45 caliber handgun and threatened a group of individuals in the area of Richard Avenue and Queen Street around 12:08 a.m.

He was taken into custody on the charged of terroristic threats, simple assault and disorderly conduct. The replica was recovered at the scene.