POLICE: Weekly Police Blotter

ACCIDENT:
Two drivers were transported to the hospital with minor injuries Saturday after a police SUV struck a car. The crash happened about 1:50 a.m. at the intersection of Lawrence Avenue and 7th Street in Ellwood City. According to the report, the driver failed to yield to traffic as he entered the intersection, where a red blinking light was activated. The report added that the police SUV had activated its siren and emergency lights before entering the intersection while a yellow blinking light was in effect. The police SUV struck the car, causing it to spin out into a building. The police SUV also spun out, hitting another building. Per the report, neither driver was properly wearing a safety belt.

AGGRAVATED ASSAULT:
Steven Pearlstein, 43, of New Castle, is charged with aggravated assault after a domestic dispute occurring on March 11th at approximately 10:41 p.m. Police were dispatched to a residence on Old Pittsburgh Rd and spoke to the victim who advised that Pearlstein struck her in the face, choked her, and cut the upper top portion of her wrist with a knife. After gathering further evidence, officers detained Pearlstein according to a criminal complaint.

DUI:
Kirk Guilmart, 60, of Ellwood City is charged with DUI after an incident occurring on March 15th at approximately 9:41 p.m. Police were dispatched to Sheetz on the report that Guilmart was inside of the store intoxicated. Employees instructed officers to a vehicle leaving the Fifth Street exit, to which officers conducted a traffic stop. Police made contact with Guilmart and observed him to be intoxicated and subjected him to Standard Field Sobriety Tests which he failed according to a criminal complaint.

THEFT:
Terry Janiel, 21, and Abigail Nahar, 24, both of Ellwood City are each charged with multiple counts after an incident occurring on March 21st. According to a criminal complaint, and at approximately 1:26 a.m., police observed a blue dirt bike with no lights on being driven by a male who matched the description of a suspect who fled from them earlier. The bike was being followed by a black hatchback. Police attempted a traffic stop on the dirt bike going South on Sixth St, turning on to Lawrence Avenue to which the dirt bike continued to evade pursuing police and lost control while attempting to turn on 12th St. The operator of the dirt bike fled on foot, while the hatchback pulled up directly behind the Police Cruiser going at a very fast speed according to the complaint. Officers spoke with the operator of the hatchback and concluded it was Nahar. Police asked Nahar who was driving the dirt bike to which she advised was another male that the ECPD has dealt with before. Officers also suspected the driver of the dirt bike could have been injured, so they contacted the hospital to confirm whether or not the male Nahar mentioned was there, which he was not. Around 1:50 a.m. Police observed Nahar’s vehicle traveling near the local hospital in New Castle and were advised that Janiel was checking in with a hurt shoulder. New Castle Police contacted both Janiel and Nahar and asked for a vehicle search, which they approved. NCPD found clothing inside the vehicle matching the description of the clothing from the dirt bike pursuit in Ellwood. Police also made contact with the owner of the dirt bike over Facebook who had advised that it was stolen at 1:00 a.m. that night. NCPD spoke with Nahar who continued the narrative that the driver of the dirt bike was not Janiel. NCPD asked her if it was worth being charged for lying about Janiel not being the driver, which she replied with, “Wait, I might be charged? I only lied because I have a job and can’t get in trouble.” Nahar then continuously attempted to call ECPD overnight to speak with police. Janiel is charged with theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property, fleeing or attempting to elude, reckless driving, and burglary. Nahar is charged with hindering apprehension, obstructing administration of law, theft by unlawful taking (conspiracy 903), and false reports to law enforcement according to a criminal complaint.

DRUG TRAFFICKING:
Jauan Searcy, 44, of New Castle, has been sentenced in federal court to 80 months in prison, to be followed by six years of supervised release, on his conviction of drug trafficking and firearm crimes as part of a Homeland Security Task Force prosecution, United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced.

Searcy pleaded guilty in July 2025 to conspiring to distribute fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine between August 2023 and August 2024, and to possessing a firearm following a felony conviction.

According to information presented to the Court, Searcy—who had previously been convicted of a felony—was part of a drug trafficking conspiracy that was based in Detroit and in New Castle. Searcy participated in the conspiracy by retailing controlled substances to his customers in the New Castle area. When law enforcement arrested Searcy at his New Castle residence on August 1, 2024, following his federal indictment, agents found a shotgun next to Searcy’s bed. Federal law prohibits possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon.

This prosecution was part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement toward identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations that have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.