Additional charges may be filed against Joel Mario Perez
A surveillance photo released Ashley Borough Police Department.
NEWPORT TWP. — A man from Ashley was arraigned over the weekend on charges by Newport Township police that he stole items from several vehicles in August.
Joel Mario Perez, 31, of West Hartford Street, was identified as the man who entered parked vehicles on Old Newport Street and stole golf clubs, a pool cue stick, a wallet and a sweater on Aug. 22, according to court records.
Surveillance footage showed Perez arriving in the area of Old Newport Street driving a black 2024 Honda Civic reportedly stolen from the parking lot of Mohegan Pennsylvania casino in Plains Township, court records allege.
When a resident of Old Newport Street confronted Perez, he allegedly claimed he was delivering mail before speeding away in the Honda.
Police in Newport Township identified Perez as the suspect based on surveillance footage and Wilkes-Barre police.
Perez was also identified by the Pennsylvania State Police at Wilkes-Barre of initiating a pursuit while driving the Honda in the area of Kidder Street and North Wilkes-Barre Boulevard just after 11:30 p.m. Friday. State police say they spotted the reported stolen Honda driving by Perez, who sped away at speeds reaching 90mph on Kidder Street.
The pursuit was terminated due to public safety.
It was not immediately known when Perez was arrested. He was booked into the Luzerne County Correctional Facility Saturday night and was arraigned Sunday by District Judge Thomas Malloy of Wilkes-Barre on three counts of theft and a single count of driving without a license filed by Newport Township police.
Perez remained jailed Tuesday at the county correctional facility for lack of $50,000 bail.
Perez is considered a person of interest by Ashley police for allegedly rummaging through vehicles and stealing a bag of tools on Barnes Street on Aug. 27.
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