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A Cambria County man serving 13 to 26 years for operating a prostitution ring out of a motel in Richland Township has lost his latest appeal to the Pennsylvania Superior Court.
The state appeals court on Monday upheld a decision by Cambria County Judge Tamara R. Bernstein to dismiss a post-conviction petition filed by Barshay Reqwan Dunbar, 42.
Dunbar was convicted of two counts of trafficking in individuals, five counts of promoting prostitution, one count of criminal use of a communication facility and three counts of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance.
The incident that led to his arrest occurred on
Oct. 28, 2016, when the manager of a Richland Township motel reported to police that she believed a prostitution ring was operating out of one of her motel rooms and pointed police to an advertisement on a website that contained photos of several women.
The police officer who received the initial call became concerned when he noted one of the photographs on the website appeared to be that of a minor.
Police were able to stop a car containing Dunbar and two of the women as they were driving from the motel.
The woman admitted they were prostituting themselves and stated that Dunbar was responsible for making appointments, determining what services were to be performed and the price to be charged for the services.
The Superior Court upheld Dunbar's conviction and sentence and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court refused further hearing.
In 2020, Dunbar filed a post-conviction petition in which he charged that his trial attorney and appeals attorney were both "ineffective" for failing to take testimony from two witnesses who he claimed would have changed the outcome of his trial -- had they been allowed to testify.
The judge eventually heard testimony from the two witnesses in 2022, but Dunbar's arguments of ineffectiveness were rejected by Bernstein.
A Superior Court panel consisting of Judges John T. Bender, Victor P. Stabile and Dan Pellegrini on Monday concluded that Dunbar failed to show that the two witnesses would have benefited his case had they been called during trial.
While they stated they were friends of his, they admitted they had no firsthand knowledge about activities at the motel in October 2016.
Their testimony, the Superior Court ruled, would not have shown Dunbar's trial counselor or appeals attorney erred.
Dunbar remains incarcerated in the State Correctional Institution at Houtzdale.
He was represented by attorney Richard M. Corcoran of Ebensburg during his latest appeal.