A Schuylkill County man faces allegations that he threatened to kill a man with a knife and blow up a mobile home during a dispute over an eviction notice earlier this month.
Police in West Mahanoy Township say they responded to a home on Mount Olive Blvd. in Lost Creek at about 4:45 p.m. on Dec. 4, for a reported disturbance involving a weapon.
The man living at that residence told police that his niece arrived at the home with her boyfriend, identified as the defendant Shawn Jessman, 33, of Ringtown. The resident reported that his niece is the legal owner of the mobile home and she and Jessman intended to serve him with an eviction notice.
The resident reportedly told police that his niece, Jessman, and an unidentified male began acting aggressively toward him and a juvenile present in the home. During a verbal argument regarding the eviction process, Jessman allegedly picked up a green-handled kitchen knife located on the front porch.
Jessman allegedly swung the knife in a “slashing motion” toward the resident, who was standing in the doorway. He then threatened the resident, saying “I’ll kill you.”
Police say Jessman also threatened to “blow up” the mobile home with the resident and child inside. Jessman then allegedly threw the knife into the driveway before fleeing the scene in a dark-colored Chevrolet Equinox.
A green-handled kitchen knife with a 5-inch silver blade near a pickup truck in the driveway was found at the scene, police say.
Officers stopped the Chevrolet Equinox shortly after near the William Penn Fire Co. on Mount Olive Blvd.
Upon taking Jessman into custody, police say Jessman appeared to be under the influence of methamphetamine. Police noted that Jessman acted erratically after being placed in the rear of a patrol vehicle, banging on the partition.
Jessman reportedly admitted he and his girlfriend went to the residence to serve the eviction notice but denied being the aggressor. Jessman claimed that the resident came to the front door with a shotgun.
He further alleged that the resident was the one who brandished the knife, and that he had thrown it into the driveway to get it away from the resident.
Jessman was transported to a holding facility and was released from custody after officers obtained his demographic information.
Jessman was arraigned on misdemeanor charges of simple assault and making terroristic threats before Magisterial District Judge Anthony Kilker.
Kilker set bail at 10% of $25,000 and Jessman was remanded to Schuylkill County Prison. Court records show he remains incarcerated awaiting a preliminary hearing scheduled for this coming Thursday.
Jessman is already facing significant legal trouble prior to the December incident, having been jailed in early October following back-to-back encounters with police involving drugs, stolen firearms, and a storage unit burglary.
The sequence of arrests began to unravel on the night of Oct. 3, when St. Clair police pulled over Jessman’s black Nissan 370Z for a turn signal violation. During the stop, officers reported smelling marijuana and subsequently searched the vehicle. Police allege they discovered a cache of contraband, including suspected methamphetamine, marijuana, and 35 buprenorphine and naloxone films for which Jessman did not hold a prescription. The search also reportedly yielded a bag containing multiple Pennsylvania inspection and emissions stickers.
Officers further alleged they found a black backpack in the vehicle containing three handguns: a Glock 19, a Smith & Wesson Model 639, and a 9mm Smith & Wesson Shield. Investigators learned the Shield had been reported stolen out of Mount Carmel. According to court documents, Jessman admitted to purchasing the stolen weapon for $350 from a man behind a fast-food restaurant in Ashland.
That traffic stop occurred just hours after Jessman had been released from custody by West Mahanoy Township police in connection with a burglary at the STP Storage Facility. In that case, reported on Oct. 2, a victim discovered the lock on her unit had been cut and various power tools were missing.
Police identified Jessman’s vehicle from security footage of the theft. When officers located him in Ringtown, they allegedly found red bolt cutters, a broken padlock, and drills inside his car. Jessman reportedly claimed he had broken into the unit by accident, believing it belonged to a relative, and was only searching for a sweatshirt.
Following the St. Clair arrest, Jessman was arraigned on felony charges of receiving stolen property and criminal trespass, along with numerous misdemeanors related to drugs, theft, and possession of display documents. He was remanded to Schuylkill County Prison on $50,000 cash bail in the Saint Clair case and $20,000 bail in the West Mahanoy Township case.
Bail was modified in each case to unsecured and Jessman was eventually released from prison on Nov. 25.
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