Hearing Continued for Man Accused of Blaming Theft on Brother

The hearing was continued for a man accused of stealing a wrench and watch and attempting to attack a Sears Loss Prevention employee at the Sears.

Anthony James Thomas Jr. was sent back to the Allegheny County Jail on Monday and was ordered to pay $144.98 in restitution to Sears. If he complies, his charges will be reduced to a summary retail and summary harassment.

said Anthony James Thomas Jr. gave Sears employees his brother's personal information and that his brother showed up for the preliminary hearing more than a month ago. After insisting he did not steal from Sears, a Sears employee texted the picture of the theft suspect in their files to a constable in the courtroom, and it was a picture of Anthony Thomas.

It took police about a month to find and arrest the correct Thomas.

Other Sears Theft Cases
Two men will face hearings after criminal complaints were filed in district Judge Wyda's office.

James Richard Howell, 40, of 1518 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15219, is charged with one count of retail theft.

According to a criminal complaint filed by the , Howell is accused of stealing a Dyson Vacuum cleaner worth $650 from Sears on Nov. 23. Police stated he has three prior arrests for retail theft.

John Anthony Garrett, 32, of 1125 8th Ave., Freedom, PA 15047, is charged with two counts of retail theft and one count of receiving stolen property.

According to a criminal complaint filed by the Upper St. Clair police, Sears surveillance video showed Garrett stealing various types of clothing worth $350.

In addition, police found Garrett with a duffel bag full of various types of clothing not from Sears with tags still on them. Police stated Garrett admitted to purchasing the items from an unknown person for resale. The clothing value was more than $700.

An employee also told police he witnessed Garrett stealing the large duffel bag from Specialty Luggage in South Hills Village.

The dates of the hearings for the two suspects are unknown at this time.

Continued
The hearing was also continued for Richard Horan, 65, of 3 Boggs Ave. Rear, Pittsburgh, PA 15211.

Horan was charged with one count indecent assault, one count harassment and one count public drunkeness after a Paramount Senior Living employee told Bethel Park police Horan inappropriately grabbed her on Aug. 29. Horan told police he was trying to look at the woman's nametag, according to the complaint.

District Judge Wyda said the charges will remain open for six months. If Horan does not have any contact with the victim and does not go back to the assisted living facility, his charges will be dropped to a summary harassment.

Horan told the victim in court on Monday that he was sorry.

Suspicion of DUI
Michael Raymond O'Malley, 21, of 164 Locust St., Pittsburgh, PA 15202, is charged with one count of driving in the middle of the roadway, one count of careless driving, one count of driving under the influence of alcohol or controlled substance and an additional count of driving under the influence for having a high rate of alcohol in his system.

According to a criminal complaint filed by the Upper St. Clair police, an officer found O'Malley at 4:12 a.m. on Oct. 23 in the driver's seat of a car that had crashed into a tree near the intersection of Route 19 and Southern Highlands Drive.

O'Malley was arrested for suspicion of DUI. His blood alcohol content results came back as .142 percent and .139 percent. The legal level of alcohol in Pennsylvania is .08 percent.