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Suspect charged in gunfire incident

Barnhart accused of stealing firearm, shooting it off while on Ghost Town Trail

EBENSBURG — Multiple felony charges have been filed against an Ebensburg man accused of firing a gun in late July while on the Ghost Town Trail.

Cambria Township police were called July 23 to a home along Penn Avenue after a man reported that Patrick A. Barnhart, 46, of the 600 block of East High Street, stole a gun from his truck, officers said.

According to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday, the man reported that he believed Barnhart got a hold of his keys and used them to remove a gun that was inside his locked pickup truck, according to the complaint.

Barnhart then went to a woman’s house along Wood Avenue, where he held the gun to his own head, according to the complaint, which explains Barnhart “stated that he was going to kill himself.”

Once the situation was calmed, Barnhart agreed to return the gun and set up a meeting to do so, officers said.

However, Barnhart did not show up for the meeting, according to the complaint.

Later, a call was made to the Cambria County 911 Center by a man who reported that he saw Barnhart with the gun on the Ghost Town Trail, police said.

The man also told police that Barnhart had fired the weapon, according to the complaint.

Officers then got a report that Barnhart was in a wooded area near Ebensburg’s Walmart.

A K-9 unit from Johnstown assisted in trying to locate Barnhart in the wooded area, but officers were unsuccessful, according to the complaint.

However, he was later located at a vacant home along Myers Street, where he was found in possession of the stolen gun — a Ruger LC9, police said.

Barnhart was taken into custody and transfered to Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center, Johnstown, for an evaluation.

Later, police interviewed a witness who said she saw Barnhart fire the gun at another man while on the Ghost Town Trail, according to the complaint, which explains that the shot missed, going over the man’s head.

Barnhart was arraigned Wednesday before Magisterial District Judge Frederick Creany.

He is charged with felony counts of receiving stolen property, aggravated assault and carrying a firearm without a license. He also faces a misdemeanor charge of recklessly endangering another person, online court records show.

He is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing before Creany at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Mirror Staff Writer Sean Sauro is at 946-7535.

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