Arnold police officer accused of hiding evidence, tampering with witness in Game Commission investigation

An Arnold police officer is on unpaid leave after the state Game Commission filed charges against him stemming from the alleged unlawful taking of a whitetail deer.

Jacob A. Pollick, 29, of Murrysville faces a summary charge of unlawful killing or taking of big game and misdemeanor charges of tampering with evidence and intimidating a witness.

According to charges the Game Commission filed March 21, Pollick shot an antlered whitetail deer during closed season on Oct. 11 in the area of the Pittsburgh Mills mall in Frazer. According to the commission’s website, only the archery deer hunting season would have been in force on that date and it would have been illegal to shoot a deer with a firearm.

In separate criminal complaints, the commission alleges Pollick tried to hide evidence — deer skulls — outside his home and encouraged a friend to lie if he were subpoenaed to testify.

In one affidavit, game wardens investigating the unlawful taking of the deer said they went to Pollick’s home on Greensburg Road in Murrysville on Nov. 19 to meet with him, but Pollick was not there.

Game wardens said they saw multiple deer skulls and antlers and hunting clothes and gear around the front of Pollick’s home. A game warden called him around 1:50 p.m.

According to the complaint, Pollick said he was bear hunting in Armstrong County and that he would not be home for several hours because a member of his party had just shot a bear. Pollick said he could meet them at 5:30 p.m.

The complaint says Pollick did not know the game wardens were at his address. They staged down the road and waited.

The complaint says Pollick showed up just before 3 p.m. When game wardens pulled into his driveway, the complaint says, they saw Pollick with a deer head in each of his hands walking around the front of his truck and the front door open.

A game warden who told Pollick to stop what he was doing saw a board that had been flush against the house was leaning forward. The deer heads that Pollick had been carrying were behind the board and covered with a jacket.

Pollick could not explain his early arrival home and claimed he was getting the deer heads out for officers to examine, the complaint states.

“However, his sudden return to the residence after providing us the address and the actions surrounding the skull-capped deer suggest the defendant traveled to the residence to hide evidence before officers could arrive,” the affidavit states.

Skull capping is the process of removing the top portion of a deer’s skull, where its antlers attach to the skull.

Game wardens said they seized several skull-capped deer heads because Pollick was not able to provide evidence that they were taken lawfully. Regardless of the method used to harvest a deer, hunters in Pennsylvania are permitted only one antlered buck per year.

In the other complaint, game wardens said Pollick identified a friend who was present at the scene with him and the deer. Pollick did not know that a game warden had already spoken with that individual.

After meeting with Pollick, the game warden contacted the man and asked if Pollick had reached out to him. According to the complaint, the man said Pollick called him and told him that if he was subpoenaed to testify, he “was to forget the timeline of events from the day the deer was shot.”

Pollick did not have an attorney listed in court records and could not be reached for comment.

Pollick is scheduled for preliminary hearings April 25 before District Judge Charles Conway and May 3 before District Judge Carolyn S. Bengel; and a summary trial April 5 before District Judge David J. Sosovicka.

Arnold Mayor Joe Bia said Monday that the city put Pollick on unpaid administrative leave as soon as they were made aware of the charges mid-to-late last week.

Bia said Arnold hired Pollick as a full-time officer in December.

Two Arnold police officers are on unpaid leave because of criminal charges. Ryan Matthew Clark, 32, is awaiting trial on charges related to him being accused of lying about how his patrol vehicle was damaged last year.

With another officer injured, Bia said that leaves Arnold’s police force with six full-time officers plus Chief Eric Doutt.