Suellen Leitch

SUMMIT TWP — State police said a woman admitted that she traded sexual favors for money that she used to buy heroin.

Suellen M. Leitch, 23, of Butler told police in May that she was “involved with prostitution to support her heroin addiction,” according to court documents, and used “approximately 10 to 20 bags of heroin a day.”

Police on Wednesday charged Leitch with two counts of possession of a controlled substance, possession of a small amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, and promoting prostitution.

The defendant was living on Mitchell Hill Road in Summit Township on May 14 when police vice officers began surveillance of her apartment, according to court documents.

The investigation began, authorities said, after the apartment building owner passed on his suspicions to police.

Following their surveillance, officers paid a “knock and talk” visit to Leitch's apartment. A “knock and talk” is a tactic in which police knock on someone's door and ask to talk to them about information or to obtain consent for a search.

Leitch, police said, allowed the officers to look in her home.

Among the items seized, documents said, was a stamp bag of heroin, a baggie of marijuana, a syringe loaded with heroin and boxes of condoms.

On May 14, investigators interviewed the defendant, who acknowledged that she had been “meeting with guys for money.” She said she was charging them $80 to $100 for a 30-minute “session,” according to a police affidavit.

She allegedly told them that she had been involved in prostitution for three years.