A Schuylkill County man was arrested after police in Berks County say he scammed a man out of a dirt bike by trading him a stolen motorcycle during a Facebook Marketplace transaction.
Jeremy Irizarry Gonzalez, 20, of Tamaqua, was committed to the Berks County Prison after failing to post $10,000 monetary bail at his arraignment on the evening of June 29. He was released the following day after posting bail. He’s being charged with felony receiving stolen property, theft by unlawful taking, and theft by deception.
Police say a Tilden Township man and his juvenile son were unaware the Suzuki motorcycle they received in the trade was stolen because it had been listed for sale on Facebook Marketplace. The transaction was completed when Irizarry Gonzalez left with the victim’s 1999 Yamaha YZ-125 dirt bike, leaving the stolen Suzuki and a handwritten bill of sale behind, police say.
The bill of sale, dated Sept. 13, 2025, contained a phone number and an address of 648 1/2 E. Broad St., police say. The victim told police he communicated with a phone number to facilitate the transaction and believed the suspect lived in Tamaqua.
A records query of the E. Broad St. address showed Irizarry Gonzalez resided there, police say. During a phone interview in May, a relative of Irizarry Gonzalez confirmed the phone number listed on the bill of sale belonged to him, police say.
The victim positively identified Irizarry Gonzalez as the person he received the stolen motorcycle from during a photo lineup, police say.
During a brief telephone call with police on May 14, Irizarry Gonzalez said he did the trade with the victim, police say. However, police say Irizarry Gonzalez did not participate in a requested in-person interview on their agreed-upon date and time.
A preliminary hearing in this case is scheduled for July 27 before Magisterial District Judge Kim Bagenstose in Hamburg.
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