Category Archives: Arrests

Outstanding arrests.

Carelessly Driving, Illegally Carrying

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Officers William Hamby and Matthew Deibler were patrolling the southeast neighborhoods of Lancaster City at about midnight on March 5th 2022 when they observed a vehicle weaving in and out of traffic lanes. 

Officers stopped the car and spoke with the juvenile male driver and adult male passenger. During their conversations, these experienced officers realized that this situation was more than poor driving as each of these males were found to be hiding an illegal handgun in their waistband. Both of these firearms were quickly and safely taken into the hands of the Lancaster City Police.

Thank you Officers Hamby and Deibler for taking action and keeping our City safe!

Burglary Investigation Leads to Gun Arrest

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On February 24th 2022 the Lancaster City Police were called to the 500 block of N Plum Street to investigate a man breaking into an apartment. Officers Michael Whitaker and Steven Cruz were the first to arrive in the area and as they approached, the adult male suspect began to run.

Officers Whitaker and Cruz immediately pursued after him. No stranger to foot chases, Officer Whitaker was able to clearly provide the description of the man as well as his direction of travel to his fellow officers. With this information Officer Eliud Tirado responded swiftly to the location and intercepted the man. As Officer Tirado approached he watched as the man pulled a handgun (which was being carried illegally) from his waistband. When the man realized that Officer Tirado was feet from him, he threw the gun to the ground. Officer Tirado then quickly placed him into custody.

A great show of bravery and discipline from all involved. Thank you to these officers, and all of the other officers, who responded and acted valiantly. Another gun and another bad guy off of the streets!

Selective Enforcement Unit Makes 2021 A Record Year

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The Selective Enforcement Unit (SEU) is critical to keeping Lancaster City a safe place to live, work, and visit. Sergeant Tom Cole, who recently celebrated his 20th year of service, leads the unit of five officers as they use various methods in identifying and prosecuting street and mid-level drug dealing throughout the City. Much of their work ties into other investigations within Lancaster City and County including drug networks, homicides, shootings, robberies, and theft related crimes. These officers are selected based on their strong character, high work ethic, and tenacity in fighting crime.

The unit’s duties are not limited to investigations. Their weekly activities include speaking with their community about improving their neighborhood, testifying in court, attending and conducting trainings, following investigative leads, information sharing with other agencies, writing reports, completing casework, and assisting others within the department. These officers also each take on other duties including serving as members of the Special Emergency Response Team, the Use of Force Cadre, and conducting pre-employment background investigations. The unit has also become a trusted ally of the Lancaster County Drug Task Force, the PA Attorney General’s Office, and Federal Bureau of Investigations, among others. Their dedication to the success of the department and improvement of life in Lancaster City is obvious.

The achievements of SEU can also be attributed to the hard work of the countless other officers of the department who worked alongside them and shared information. A tremendous thank you and congratulations to SEU for their relentless pursuit of criminals.

Authors note: This unit functions under a full team mentality and are asked to perform undercover operations, which is why each officer’s name is not featured here.

SEU 2021 Year End Statistics:

  • 183 people charged with crimes
  • 965 Felony charges
    • 688 of those being Delivery of a Controlled Substance or Possession With Intent to Deliver a Controlled Substance
  • 104 Misdemeanor charges
  • 9 residential search warrants

Seizures:

  • 9 handguns
  • 54.06 grams of heroin ($18,020 street value)
  • 245.14 grams of cocaine ($24,514 street value)
  • 1702.1 grams of marijuana ($17,021 street value)
  • 340 grams of K2/synthetic ($3,400 street value)
  • 120 grams of methamphetamine ($12,000 street value)
  • 51 packets of Suboxone ($510 street value)
  • 302 various prescription pills such as Oxycodone, Xanax, etc.

One Night + Two Car Stops = Three Guns

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It took about four hours for officers to remove three illegal firearms out of the hands of criminals.

Just before 11 PM on February 21st 2022 Officers William Wagner and Charley Darkes-Burkey made a traffic stop for a summary violation in the 300 block of W King Street. As Officer Wagner approached the driver, an adult male, he immediately found him to be hiding a handgun underneath of his leg. Both officers remained calm and clearly communicated with the driver and his adult male passenger. As the investigation continued to unfold, officers found that the passenger not only had a large amount of drugs but he also had a handgun with an extended magazine. Both of these weapons were possessed illegally.

Inside the car, officers were able to find a significant amount of PCP as well as Alprazolam and Oxycodone pills, about $400 worth of crack cocaine, and nearly $2,400.00. Three additional extended magazines were found, brining the total amount of ammunition accessible to the men to 122 rounds. The passenger, a man with a significant history of gun possession and violent crime, was also wanted through United States Probation and Parole.

At about 3:30 AM on the 22nd, Officer Kevin Golinsky observed a car which he was aware had been involved in a recent shooting. He was able to stop the car in the area of S Christian Street and Woodward Street. Completing a thorough traffic stop, Officer Golinksy was able to find that the passenger, an adult male, was hiding an illegally possessed handgun at his feet. This man also had a sizeable amount of marijuana with him as well. Not only was this a great arrest but the information gathered could possibly lead to an arrest in an open shooting investigation.

Both of these stops are displays of great police work. Three dangerous people and three firearms were removed from our streets. Thank you to these officers for a job well done!

Officers Take Two Guns From The Streets

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On the night of February 13th 2022, two illegally possessed guns were removed from streets of Lancaster by our officers.

Shortly before 9 PM, Officer Ryan Yoder was in the area of New Dorwart and Fremont Street. Using his training, experience, and keen sense of illegal activity, Officer Yoder was able to interrupt a drug sale occurring inside a vehicle. As he approached the vehicle some of the occupants fled. Staying with the vehicle, which still had several people inside, Officer Yoder was able to provide information on the persons who had run away to his fellow officers.

Officer Randall Myers and Charley Darkes-Burkey were able locate one of the fleeing persons, a juvenile male. The male surrendered immediately and announced that he was armed. Officer Myers was able to quickly and calmly disarm the male and retrieve the illegally possessed handgun from their waistband.

About one hour later, Officers Tyler Chubb and Harry Valverde stopped a vehicle in the 200 block of Beaver Street for summary violations. Officer Chubb spoke with the driver, an adult male. During his conversation with the driver, Officer Chubb realized that the male had illegal drugs with him. While continuing the investigation, Officer Chubb had the male step out from their car. During a check for weapons, the male attempted to run from Officer Chubb. After a very short foot-chase the male was apprehended and his illegally possessed handgun, which he had hidden inside his fanny-pack, was found.

This is a result of fantastic pro-active police work by these officers. Thank you to all involved for making Lancaster City a safer place to be!