Johnstown man gets 13 years in U.S. case
A Johnstown man should have thought twice about bringing his drug operation into Middlesex Township.
Andrew S. Edwards Jr., 32, was sentenced Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh to 13 years in prison for possession with intent to deliver heroin and crack cocaine, carrying a firearm during a drug trafficking crime and possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon.
Edwards also must undergo six years of supervised release following his prison sentence.
On April 11, 2016, Edwards was a passenger in the back seat of a car that was pulled over around 7:30 p.m. on Route 8 near Dinnerbell Road by Middlesex Township police.
Officer Bryan Costanzo noticed items on the floor of the vehicle that are consistent with crack cocaine use — and after securing permission from the driver, searched the car.
Costanzo noticed a denim jacket atop a backpack, and lifted it from the car.
At that point, 80 stamp bags of heroin fell out of the jacket onto Route 8 in the pouring rain, the documents said.
After obtaining a search warrant and having the car towed, officers found 528 bags of heroin and a plastic bag of crack cocaine in the jacket and a loaded Springfield XC .45-caliber handgun in the backpack, according to federal court documents.
A towel, hairbrush and toothbrush also in the backpack contained enough DNA for the FBI to determine the backpack and its illegal contents belonged to Edwards, who police discovered was released from prison on similar charges just four months earlier.
Police reports from 2016 reveal that the jacket contained special hidden pockets designed for smuggling drugs.
Others charged at the time included the driver of the Chevrolet Monte Carlo, Kristina L. Martin, 46, of Butler and her then live-in boyfriend, Tyree J. Freeman, 39. Edwards and Freeman are cousins, according to police reports from 2016.
In July 2016, Freeman was sentenced in county court to one year in jail with credit for 87 days served. That same month, Martin had all charges against her dismissed in county court.
