CLARION, Pa. (EYT) — A Clarion man is behind bars after he was allegedly found living in an unrented Clarion apartment in possession of methamphetamine and weapons.
According to a criminal complaint filed on February 27, PSP Clarion filed the following criminal charges against 42-year-old Joshua Dale Best, of Clarion, in Magisterial District Judge Timothy P. Schill’s office on Monday, February 27:
- Criminal Trespass — Break Into Structure, Felony 2
- Manufacture, Delivery, or Possession with Intent to Distribute, Felony
- Making Repairs/Selling Offensive Weapons, Misdemeanor 1
- Defiant Trespass — Actual Communication, TMisdemeanor 3
- Use/Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Misdemeanor
According to a criminal complaint, PSP Clarion were dispatched around 10:24 p.m. on Sunday, February 26, to the 400 block of South 2nd Avenue, in Clarion, for “what was reported as an unknown individual that was living in what was supposed to be an apartment that was not being rented.”
Upon arrival, a PSP Clarion trooper spotted a white male walking behind the apartments carrying pizza boxes and wearing a sleeveless shirt. A trooper walked behind the apartment buildings and observed the male walking down through the weeds. The trooper walked over to the male who identified himself as Joshua Best. He was wearing a sleeveless, shirt, shorts, and a backpack, according to the complaint.
The complaint states that Best told the troopers he was going to meet his friend at one of the apartments. After speaking with him, the trooper had him come to the front of the apartment he specified. Once Best was brought around to the front of the apartment, he was identified by an employee of the rental company.
The employee told the troopers that he had previously told Best to stay off of the property. The employee stated that the individuals staying in the apartment must have changed the locks because the keys he had did not work, the complaint states.
Best was able to use a key that was in his possession and open the lock on the apartment door. He was detained once the apartment door was opened, the complaint notes.
The troopers cleared the apartment to ensure nobody else was living inside. The rental company employee granted the troopers permission to kick open a locked bedroom door on the second floor of the apartment. Once the apartment was cleared, Best was placed under arrest for criminal trespass, according to the complaint.
A search incident to arrest was conducted on Best and the items he had on his person. The search yielded four baggies containing 23 grams of suspected crystal methamphetamine, $472.00, three cell phones, silver bars, a large amount of clear plastic baggies, and metal knuckles. Troopers also discovered a black plastic lock box with a padlock on the corner, the complaint indicates.
Best told the troopers the box contained $1,500.00 and methamphetamine.
The rental company employee granted the troopers permission to search the apartment. It was noted that Best had told the troopers that the locked bedroom upstairs is where he was keeping his belongings. Upon searching the apartment, additional drug paraphernalia items, a black safe, and three .22 caliber firearms were discovered, according to the complaint.
Unable to post $7,500.00 monetary bail, Best was lodged in the Clarion County Jail.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 7 at 2:15 p.m. in front of Judge Schill.
