District attorney: Raid at Arnold house nets nearly $27K in cash and crystal meth

An Arnold man faces felony charges after narcotics agents and local police found more than $15,000 in cash and nearly $12,000 worth of crystal meth when they raided his home, according to Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli.

Tyson Bargerstock, 36, of the 1600 block of Fourth Avenue, is charged with illegal possession of a firearm and two counts of possession of drugs with the intent to deliver, which are felonies; along with four other drug-related counts.

Police said the gun charge was filed because Bargerstock previously was convicted of burglary and is not allowed to have a gun.

Bargerstock is being detained in the Westmoreland County jail in lieu of a $50,000 cash bond, according to court records. He faces a preliminary hearing before District Judge Frank J. Pallone Jr. on April 28.

Agents for the state Attorney General’s Office and members of the county’s drug task force, which includes officers from Arnold, executed a search warrant shortly after 7 a.m. Wednesday at Bargerstock’s house, according to a criminal complaint.

After announcing their presence, officers broke through the front door when nobody answered, the complaint said.

Police said they arrested Bargerstock and searched the house, where they found:

• 115 grams of crystal methamphetamine, with street value of $11,500;

• 0.34 of a gram of fentanyl, street value $54;

• 50 suboxone packets, street value $500;

• A Sig Sauer .40-caliber pistol;

• $15,275 in cash.

Police said the drugs were field-tested and came back positive before being sent to a state police crime lab for additional analysis.

McKean County suspect sought

In an unrelated case, investigators issued an arrest warrant for Timothy Bottorf, 42, of Eldred, McKean County. Bottorf is sought on charges of robbery causing serious bodily injury in Westmoreland County.

Authorities did not release details about Bottorf, but court records show, in addition to the charges he faces in Westmoreland County, he was charged in February with robbery in McKean County.

“I continue to be impressed with the unrelenting law enforcement officers on the Westmoreland County Drug Task Force and the collaboration between local, county and state agencies,” Ziccarelli said.

“Every seizure results in more illegal drugs and guns off the streets and out of our communities,” she said.