Zaremba
The Pennsylvania Superior Court this week rejected an appeal by a Wilkes-Barre man who challenged the difference between “tampering” and “abandonment.”
A Luzerne County jury convicted Matthew Zaremba, 38, of receiving stolen property, carrying a firearm without a license and tampering with evidence following a trial before Court of Common Pleas Judge Michael T. Vough in April 2025.
Hanover Township police were investigating a suspicious person rummaging through vehicles in the Breslau section and encountered Zaremba on Ferry Road on June 17, 2023. As a patrolman pulled the cruiser next to Zaremba, court records say, Zaremba knelt down and placed a firearm under the cruiser.
The patrolman saw Zaremba bend over outside the rear passenger side of the cruiser but heard only a metal banging sound. A second patrolman also saw Zaremba bend over and did not see what he placed on the pavement until Zaremba was detained, court records say.
Police recovered a firearm from under the cruiser.
In his appeal, Zaremba challenged the evidence of tampering with evidence related to placing the firearm on the ground, as he claimed he “abandoned” the firearm and did not alter, destroy, or conceal it.
A three-member panel of the Superior Court — Judges Deborah A. Kunselman, Megan McCarthy King and Emeritus Judge Correale F. Stevens — rejected Zaremba’s appeal in an eight-page opinion issued Tuesday.
Using Vough’s post-conviction opinion, the Superior Court judges ruled Zaremba did not abandon the firearm because he was not being pursued or chased, as the two Hanover Township police officers were unable to see the object, which was the firearm, that Zaremba attempted to conceal.
“…(Zaremba) was not fleeing or running from police when he discarded the firearm but was walking alongside the patrol car and ignoring commands to stop so that officers could speak to him….(Zaremba) had limited options, and attempt to place the weapon in the only place he had available where it would not be seen, the evidence demonstrates (Zaremba) intent to conceal the firearm and impair the investigation,” the Superior Court ruled in upholding Zaremba’s conviction for tampering with evidence.
Vough sentenced Zaremba to seven to 13 years, eight months in state prison in June 2025; the sentence also included an unrelated receiving stolen property offense by Wilkes-Barre City police.
Local journalism matters, and your support makes it possible. You can help sustain this work by making a donation or choosing one of our subscription options. Subscribers enjoy valuable benefits, including full access to our e-edition, a reduced ad experience on timesleader.com, and more.
Your support helps ensure independent, high-quality local news remains available today and for future generations. Thank you for standing with local journalism.