A Schuylkill County man wanted on an aggravated assault charge was apprehended late last month after allegedly stealing items, including a couple cans of Twisted Tea and a pack of cigarettes.
Police in Saint Clair say they received a tip on the night of Aug. 25 that Brent Herb, 38, of Pottsville, was at a home on S. Fourth St. in the borough. Herb was on the run since Aug. 12 after he allegedly assaulted a woman at her Pottsville apartment so severely that she suffered a brain bleed. (Read that story here.)
While confirming that and another warrant from Schuylkill County Adult Probation, police learned that Herb should be considered armed and dangerous. Considering that, Saint Clair Police got backup from officers in Port Carbon and Pottsville as well as Pennsylvania State Police.
State Police informed Saint Clair Police that they’d just responded to a theft call in Cumbola, Blythe Township, involving Herb and another suspect. The duo had allegedly stolen two cans of Twisted Tea, a pack of cigarettes, and a power inverter before fleeing the area in a gray Chevrolet Impala.
That Impala was located in the driveway of the S. Fourth St. home where Herb was reported to be on the night of the 25th. Police surrounded the location and after a search of the residence, Herb was not located.
However, police noticed a near-empty can of black cherry Twisted Tea in the back yard. Rustling in a nearby bush was also noticed by police. In the bush, police spotted Herb. They say he was covered in dirt at the time.
Near Herb at that time, police say, was a gray and black bandana, an unopened can of Twisted Tea, a pair of sunglasses a Motorola brand phone, and a black Smith & Wesson .22 pistol featuring a scope and illuminated optic. The gun had one round in the chamber, nine more rounds in the magazine, and the safety was off.
Herb was eventually incarcerated at Schuylkill County Prison, where he remained until Monday, when he appeared at the office of Magisterial District Judge James Reiley to answer to the charges related to the assault incident in Pottsville on Aug. 12. Those charges, after a few audible frustrations with his attorney, were waived to Schuylkill County Court of Common Pleas.
Herb is being held on $25,000 cash bail for the assault incident in Pottsville.
Related to his apprehension in Saint Clair, Herb was charged Monday with a felony count of carrying a gun without a license. He is scheduled to be arraigned on that charge on Tuesday afternoon before Judge David Plachko.
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