A Schuylkill County man says the lease-to-own deal he has on a house is likely to collapse because he can’t get out on bail on guns and drugs charges.
At his preliminary hearing earlier this month, Justin Matthews, 46, sought to have his $100,000 bail reduced by Magistrate Judge James Reiley but he was denied. In fact, after learning more about the severity of the charges at the hearing, Assistant District Attorney Andrew Bench sought to have bail increased to $250,000 but was also denied.
“This is someone who needs to remain in jail,” Bench said.
Matthews is facing two felony counts of possession with intent to deliver and two felony counts of possessing a prohibited firearm. He’s also looking at misdemeanor charges for possessing controlled substances and possession of drug paraphernalia. The charges stem from the execution of a search warrant by detectives from the District Attorney’s Office Drug Task Force in May at Matthews’ Line St. home in the city.
On May 27, detectives say Matthews pulled up to the home in a white van and got out. During their search of his home and person, investigators say they found methamphetamine and fentanyl – more than just for personal use – as well as unused packaging materials for those narcotics.
Two guns were discovered on a bed in the home, one under a pillow and another under a bed sheet. Both were loaded at the time of the search. Matthews, authorities say, is prohibited from possessing firearms due to prior felony convictions in New Jersey for robbery and illegal gun possession.
Charges against Matthews were held for Schuylkill County Court of Common Pleas. At the hearing, Matthews asked Reiley to reduce his bail so he could get back to work at a local textiles business. He said he needed to keep working so that a lease-to-own arrangement he has with his brother-in-law in New Jersey doesn’t collapse. Matthews said if he remains in jail while his case in pending, he’ll lose his job.
His attorney, court-appointed Charles Dutko, of the Public Defenders Office, said Matthews would even agree to electronic monitoring if he were granted lower bail. Reiley said the place to make the motion for reduced bail was the Court of Common Pleas and not his. That hasn’t been done, according to court records.
The July 6 hearing for Matthews was a month after he first appeared for a preliminary hearing in this case. On June 1, Matthews requested a continuance for the proceedings because he hadn’t yet retained counsel. Reiley was frustrated by this since, at his arraignment, he gave Matthews specific instructions during his arraignment on what to do when he got to Schuylkill County Prison that afternoon and he didn’t do it. Matthews said he’d only reached out to the Public Defenders Office just prior to the original preliminary hearing date.
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