EMPORIUM — Three Cameron County residents have been arrested after a search warrant was executed at a residence in the Emporium Borough on Wednesday.
According to information on file at Magisterial District Justice Barry Brown’s office in Emporium, police visited the residence at 60 Sycamore St. while attempting to locate Darren Donovan, 26, who is wanted on multiple active bench warrants.
While approaching the structure, police photographed a soda bottle found on the ground near the southeast corner of the house. The item was identified by a member of the Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) Vice Unit as a “one pot gas generator,” commonly used to manufacture methamphetamine, or “meth” as it is typically called.
Officers were permitted to enter the home by a tenant, Trisha Wilkins, 33, in order to look for Donovan, who was located in a bedroom closet. Wilkins repeatedly denied that Donovan was at the residence but allowed police to search for him after they made several requests to enter. While police were in the home, they allege that they saw several examples of drugs and drug paraphernalia, and located a third individual, Gregory Burdick, 32, who appeared to have drugs and drug paraphernalia near his person, as well.
The information gathered by police while in the residence led to a search warrant being granted for the premises. When the warrant was served, police found several containers filled with suspected drugs, including suspected marijuana, meth, prescription pills and unknown white powder substances, hypodermic needles, multiple pipes with suspected drug residue, and a number of items thought to be related to the use, sale, or manufacture of illegal substances.
Charges have been filed against all three individuals, who were arraigned by on-call Magisterial District Judge James Martin, of Elk County, after the warrant was served.
Wilkins faces charges of depositing, storing or disposing of chemical waste, a felony, along with misdemeanor counts of possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and hindering apprehension. She is jailed in lieu of $50,000 cash bail.
Burdick has been charged with one felony count of depositing, storing, or disposing of chemical waste along with misdemeanor counts of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Burdick has been jailed in lieu of $100,000 bail.
Donovan has been charged with a felony count of depositing, storing, or disposing of chemical waste and a misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia, and is also jailed in lieu of $100,000 bail.
Preliminary hearings for all three defendants have been scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. on March 15 at Brown’s office in the Cameron County Courthouse. Attorney information is not yet available for any of the defendants.
