Record Number Of Guns, Plenty Of Drugs Seized In Southwestern PA

PITTSBURGH, PA — In what is believed to be a record number, Pennsylvania Attorney General's narcotics agents seized 41 firearms in January in drug trafficking investigations in the five-county region that includes Allegheny, Fayette, Somerset and Westmoreland counties.

In those investigations, agents also seized more than 12 pounds of cocaine, a pound of crack cocaine, and more than 63,000 doses of fentanyl, along with quantities of heroin and marijuana.

Nine people have been arrested, so far, in connection to about 20 cases involving illegally-possessed firearms.

“These numbers are rewarding as they show the progress our team, along with partners at all levels, are making in efforts to remove firearms from the hands of drug traffickers,” Attorney General Dave Sunday said. “They also serve as indicators of the firepower our brave officers encounter when they enter a home with a warrant, or make a traffic stop, in efforts to keep communities safe. To traffickers, we say: we are not deterred.”

The total number of firearms seized in the region for the year has climbed to 48.

Most of the firearms recoveries happened outside of Pittsburgh; the two biggest seizures happened in Fayette and Somerset counties, where ongoing investigations remain regarding those guns.