Firearm stolen from New Kensington gun store found during arrest of 4 in Homestead

One of about two dozen guns stolen from a New Kensington gun store was recovered when four young men were arrested Wednesday in Homestead, according to court records.

All four men arrested were illegally carrying loaded 9 mm handguns, Homestead police said in criminal complaints.

Only one of the guns came from RC Firearms, which was burglarized early Monday, according to Alan Gilmore, a spokesman for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Philadelphia.

Gilmore could not say if any of the four men were involved in the burglary. None of the other guns taken had been found as of Thursday, he said.

Arrested in the traffic stop were the vehicle’s driver, William Byrd, 19, of Pittsburgh; James Eason and Keyauje Walker-Harris, both 20 and of New Kensington; and Tevian Williams, 21, of Pittsburgh.

Walker-Harris had a Taurus 9 mm handgun tucked in the front waist of his pants, police said. Police said that gun was found to have been stolen from RC Firearms.

Gilmore could not disclose how Walker-Harris obtained the stolen gun.

Byrd and Eason also were found to be carrying 9 mm handguns, police said. While the serial numbers of those guns were noted, police did not say where they came from in their arrest papers.

Because Walker-Harris, Byrd and Eason are younger than 21, they are prohibited from carrying concealed firearms and prohibited from owning handguns, police said.

When removed from the vehicle, Williams told police he had a 9 mm handgun. Although 21, he is not allowed to possess a firearm because of his criminal history, police said in the complaint.

During a later, more thorough search, police said, they found 71 packets of suspected heroin or fentanyl concealed in Williams’ pants.

The arrests came after Homestead police were notified at about 3:40 p.m. Wednesday that a vehicle wanted by the ATF related to the burglary of RC Firearms, an Audi SUV, had been seen on a license plate reader in West Mifflin heading toward the Homestead area, the complaint states.

Gilmore did not disclose how the SUV was involved. A pickup was used as a battering ram to gain access to the store.

A Homestead officer found the SUV empty in the 200 block of East 17th Avenue in Homestead. The officer watched it and saw the four men get in and drive away.

A Munhall officer followed the SUV in an unmarked car. When it stopped for a traffic light on East 15th Avenue at West Street, a Homestead officer initiated a traffic stop.

All four men were compliant with instructions, police said. They were removed from the SUV one at a time after more officers arrived.

Byrd and Eason each are charged with carrying a firearm without a license. They were arraigned Thursday morning and released on nonmonetary bonds.

Walker-Harris is charged with receiving stolen property and carrying a firearm without a license. He also was released on a nonmonetary bond after being arraigned Thursday morning.

All three have preliminary hearings scheduled for Feb. 14. Williams had not been arraigned as of early Thursday evening.

Williams’ criminal history includes being charged with attempted homicide in May 2022. Investigators said he lured a man to the Arnold Manor high-rise in Arnold and shot him three times.

In that case, Williams pleaded guilty in September 2023 to carrying a firearm without a license and two drug charges. He was paroled and placed on up to two years of probation, court records show.

Williams pleaded guilty in 2021 to carrying a firearm without a license and a drug charge out of Tarentum. He also pleaded guilty to a drug charge in Pittsburgh in 2020, according to court records.

Arnold police charged Eason with a summary count of disorderly conduct in November 2021 that is still pending, according to court records.

A landlord-tenant judgment for about $3,650, brought by the Westmoreland County Housing Authority and East Ken Manor, was entered against Walker-Harris last August, court records show.