PORTAGE — The sharp eye and quick response of a worker at the Portage post office with aid by an in-store alarm system aided police in the quick apprehension of an alleged burglar as he left a pharmacy with a bottle of prescription painkillers in hand.
Portage police Chief Ed Miller said one of the officers apprehended James Leroy Heidler Jr., 27, of the 1000 block of Conemaugh Avenue, Portage, shortly after he exited through the broken front window of the Mainline Pharmacy, 617 Main St.
“Our responding officer pulled in front as the individual jumped out of the window,” Miller said Monday. “The individual ran across Main Street, and after a short pursuit he was caught.”
Heidler had in his possession a bottle containing 355 Endocet pills. Endocet is a generic version of Percocet, a painkiller, Miller said.
Heidler is charged with burglary, criminal mischief, theft and drug possession with intent to deliver.
Heidler was arraigned in front of District Judge Rick Varner, Salix, and lodged in the Cambria County Prison in lieu of $50,000 bond. A preliminary hearing date has not been set.
Police say Heidler smashed a large display window in the front of the store to gain entry. He used the same window to exit the building.
An employee at the post office located across the street from the pharmacy, who was not identified, observed Heidler going into the building and immediately called police. Once inside the building, Heidler tripped a security alarm system.
Portage police were assisted by Summerhill Township police.
Local News
Cops nab alleged burglar with aid of postal worker
- Local News
-
-
$27.1B budget proposed
Gov. Tom Corbett on Tuesday proposed a budget of $27.1 billion, with no tax increases, deep cuts to higher education assistance and a range of cost-cutting in services for the poor, elderly and disabled.
-
Highlights of Gov. Corbett's state spending plan
Read on to see a bulleted list of Gov. Tom Corbett’s $27.1 billion state spending plan for the year that starts July 1.
-
Universities face steep cuts
State universities still trying to recover from deep cuts last year would have their public funding slashed even further under a budget plan unveiled Tuesday, leading some institutions to warn of a choice between maintaining buildings and offering academic programs students need to graduate.
-
Plan hurts middle class, local Democrats contend
While members of his own party praised Gov. Tom Corbett’s fiscal restraint, some local Democratic lawmakers said the Republican’s proposed budget panders to corporate interests while inflicting pain on the middle class.
-
Senate approves proposed fee on shale drilling
The state Senate voted today to impose a fee on natural-gas drilling in Pennsylvania and expand regulations for the booming industry, a milestone in a debate that has raged in the Capitol for several years.
Senators voted 31-19 to approve the 174-page bill that would fund road work and environmental clean-ups and give local governments the power to decide if the fee would be imposed on their local wells.
“Could we have done better? Supposedly, but it has taken three years to get this far,” said supporter Sen. John Wozniak, D-Johnstown, among a handful who crossed party lines. “It is time to turn the page.” -
Blogging with heart
I've got so much stuff for this Sunday's American Heart Month package, that some of the stories will spill over onto Monday. But I don't know what to leave out, or hold for the next week, so it looks like a double hit this week.
-
Pa. gas drilling fee bill debate ends without vote
Pennsylvania, the only major gas-producing state that does not tax the taking of natural gas from its soil, moved closer Tuesday to imposing a fee on the drilling in the vast Marcellus Shale reserves that have transformed the state in recent years.
-
Detour hurting some Portage businesses
Craig Mazzarese’s business depends heavily on drive-by customers, but since last week fewer drive-bys have been stopping
-
Local airport funding intact
Airport leaders here are breathing sighs of relief after Congress approved funding to support local commercial air service through 2015.
-
With state revenue tight, Westmont seeks school budget input
The Westmont Hilltop school board on Tuesday night held a public forum at the middle school to explain why the district, already one of the most efficient in the state, must raise taxes each year.
- More Local News Headlines
-






