A woman who says she’s homeless was arrested Sunday after police say she was living in a storage unit and stealing from the unit next to it.
According to an affidavit filed by West Penn Township Sgt. John Kaczmarczyk, the officer was called to the Gateway U Store location on Kepners Rd. at about noon on Sunday for a report of a burglary.
When Kaczmarczyk arrived on the scene, he found the purported burglary victims standing next to unit I14 at the storage facility. The victim said she and her boyfriend showed up at the storage unit to drop off some items and discovered that the lock was missing from it.
The woman told police that she suspected someone was living in unit I12 and that items were missing from her unit, I14. Those items included a table, chairs, a sectional sofa and other household items. Other items reportedly missing from the victim’s storage unit were some Ryobi power tools, a cordless weed wacker, a cordless leaf blower, and a cordless sewer snake.
She told Kaczmarczyk that a man was in I12 when she arrived and he initially ran away but came back prior to police showing up at the scene.
She also told police that two people were standing outside unit I12 and the door was open. With the door open, she said she could see items inside that belonged to her.
Kaczmarczyk said he identified the people purportedly in unit I12 as Nicholas Toth and Tia Focht, 32, who last had a Nesquehoning address. Focht told police that she rents unit I11 at the storage facility but was staying in I12 because she’s homeless and there was no more room in her unit.
Focht reportedly told Kaczmarczyk that she doesn’t rent I12 but decided to stay in it because it was empty. She told police that Toth was there with her because he came over the night prior to spend time with her.
Kaczmarczyk said Focht had bags of clothing and food outside unit I12 upon his arrival. He also noted a Ryobi charger and battery were on top of one those bags. Focht claimed they were hers, he says in his court papers.
Toth and Focht were taken into custody and transported back to the West Penn Twp. police station for further questioning.
Back at the station, Kaczmarczyk says Toth dimed out on Focht, saying she and three other people were involved in the burglary at unit I14. He told police that he saw text messages on Focht’s phone about the stolen items and he denied having any knowledge of these items.
Under questioning, Focht reportedly admitted to being present when these three other people took items from unit I14. She said they put as many items as they could into their vehicle and other items were stuffed into Focht’s unit, I11. Whatever was left was stashed in unit I12, where Focht was living.
Focht reportedly said that she didn’t have a place to stay on Saturday night so she went to unit I12 because she knew there was a couch and some other furniture in there.
She also reportedly agreed to a search of her storage unit where police discovered a table, Ryobi tools, boxes of household items, lamps, a mirror, a desk, and bags of clothing, all of which apparently belong to the victim who initially called police.
Focht is facing multiple felony charges following the incident on Sunday, including a second-degree burglary, and third-degree criminal trespass, theft, and receiving stolen property.
She was arraigned before District Magistrate David Rossi, who remanded her to Schuylkill County Prison on $25,000 cash bail, which hasn’t been posted.
Focht is due back in court on July 30 for a Preliminary Hearing.