City man arrested for possession of marijuana

A 24-year-old Altoona man is in jail on charges of possession with intent to deliver marijuana after probation officers visited him Wednesday for a home check.

As the officers began their search, Johnathan E. Winters reached into his pocket and took out a bag containing four packets of what he said was marijuana, adding that he intended to sell it, according to a criminal complaint filed by city police.

One of the probation officers found a scale, grinder and pipe under the defendant’s bed — items the defendant claimed were his, police said.

Winters is in Blair County Prison in lieu of $25,000 bail, according to online court documents.

A preliminary hearing before Magisterial District Judge Jeffrey Auker is set for Nov. 22.

Woman charged with drug trafficking

A 32-year-old Altoona woman is in jail on charges of possession with intent to deliver heroin, after police arrested her following a stakeout on Route 22.

Tonya A. Settlemyer, 32, was returning from a drug-buying trip to Pittsburgh late Tuesday when police — who’d been tipped off about the trip and who had obtained a search warrant from a Blair County judge — followed her vehicle from a convenience store in Cambria County to Altoona, then conducted a traffic stop, according to the criminal complaint.

They found a total of 149 packets of heroin, each labeled DIESEL — some on her person, some in her coat in the back seat and some in her purse, according to the complaint.

They also found messages on her phone that indicated drug trafficking, and they found syringes, a spoon and cotton swabs in the car, they said.

The substance in the packets registered as heroin in a field test, according to the complaint.

Settlemyer is in Blair County Prison in lieu of $50,000 bail, according to online court documents.

A preliminary hearing is set for Central Court Nov. 22.

Man charged with gas station burglary

An 18-year-old Altoona man is in jail on charges of burglary and theft for allegedly donning a ski mask and hoodie, breaking into a gas station on 18th Street and stealing more than $1,000 worth of cigarettes, lighters, candy and soda overnight Oct. 28.

Isaiah Shumac was arrested Nov. 3 while hiding in the attic of a house on the 1900 block of 13th Avenue, during a search by Altoona police, who had obtained a search warrant in hopes of finding $9,000 worth of stolen electronics, according to the criminal complaint.

When they found Shumac, there was a stolen handgun on top of an Ottoman within arm’s reach, as well as items that could have been taken from the gas station, according to the complaint.

A 14-year-old who was also wearing a ski mask helped with the burglary, and was also discovered hiding in the house during the search that located Shumac, according to the complaint.

Shumac is in Blair County Prison in lieu of 10 percent of $15,000 bail, according to online court documents.

A preliminary hearing is set for Central Court on Nov. 22.

Shumac was charged earlier this month in connection with an Oct. 27 burglary of an apartment on the 1200 block of 20th Street,

Duncansville man faces strangulation charges

A 20-year-old Duncansville man has been charged with misdemeanor strangulation and simple assault after allegedly punching and choking a woman while in the back seat of a car being driven on or near California Avenue in Allegheny Township on the evening of Oct. 19.

Jeromy W. Smith began the incident by “running his mouth” and calling the victim by an insulting word, which prompted the victim to give Smith a “love tap” on the face, according to the victim’s statement to Allegheny Township police.

Smith responded by punching the woman, choking her and holding her down by the hair, such that the victim couldn’t breathe and felt weak and lightheaded, according to police, based on the victim’s statement.

A scan showed the victim received no brain injury, but there was a “head injury, facial contusion and cervical (neck) strain,” according to medical records cited by police.

A preliminary hearing remains to be scheduled.