Donora officer charged with stealing heroin from evidence
A part-time Donora patrol officer was arrested Tuesday for allegedly stealing more than 100 stamp bags from evidence in August.
James Bowman Johnson V, 29, of Monongahela admitted to investigators he took the heroin for personal use, according to court documents.
State police and the Washington County Drug Task Force served a search warrant Aug. 10, which revealed 237 stamp bags in a residents and 133 stamp bags in a vehicle, according to the affidavit of probable cause filed in his case.
The heroin was placed in two separate manila envelopes, sealed and placed in a box on a table in the patrol room for transport to the state police crime lab in Greensburg, investigators said.
Due to a high number of police incidents, the box was not immediately sent, and stayed in the patrol room overnight. Police were preparing the box for transport early Aug. 12 when a Donora officer noticed one of the envelopes was missing, according to the affidavit.
Investigators from the state police Bureau of Criminal Investigation reviewed surveillance footage, which showed Johnson was “the only person that handled and examined items within the box of evidence numerous times.” After he handled the evidence, he was observed “acting in a peculiar way,” investigators wrote in the affidavit. They said he went to his patrol vehicle to remove his patrol bag, walked across the street with it, and then returned to his vehicle after a few seconds.
State police interviewed Johnson in November, and he allegedly admitted to stealing the heroin “for personal consumption.” He told investigators he went back and forth to the box because he was contemplating whether to take it. He said he eventually slid the envelope under his vest, walked across the street to put it in his patrol bag and placed it in his vehicle. He said he then continued with his regular shift, according to court documents.
Johnson was employed by the department since 2011, officials said.
He is charged with acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation, possession of a controlled substance, theft by unlawful taking, theft by deception, obstruction of justice, misapplication of entrusted property and tampering with evidence.
He was arraigned Tuesday afternoon before Magisterial District Judge Mark Wilson and lodged briefly in Washington County Prison in lieu of a $25,000 bond. He was freed the same day when bond was posted on his behalf, according to court documents.
Donora officials could not immediately be reached for comment.