Harmar police use cameras to identify, find suspect in Freeport Road hit-and-run | TribLIVE.com
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Harmar police use cameras to identify, find suspect in Freeport Road hit-and-run

Brian C. Rittmeyer
| Sunday, June 15, 2025 7:39 p.m.
Courtesy of Harmar Police
Harmar police said they identified this black sedan as a 1999 Honda registered to Richard Yost Jr., 59, of McCandless. Yost faces a felony charge after police say he did not stop after hitting a pedestrian on Freeport Road on June 12.

Police used a variety of cameras to identify and find the driver of a car that did not stop after hitting and seriously injuring a pedestrian Thursday night on Freeport Road in Harmar.

Harmar police charged Richard Yost Jr., 59, of McCandless on Friday with accidents involving death or personal injury, a third-degree felony.

In a criminal complaint against Yost, Harmar police said they used footage from cameras on Route 910 and Freeport Road, a plate-reading camera and a business’ surveillance camera to identify the sedan registered to Yost and track its movements before and after the collision.

Harmar police went to the area of Wendy’s, 2691 Freeport Road, shortly after 10 p.m. Thursday for a report of a pedestrian hit by a vehicle. Officers found medics tending to a woman on the ground who was covered in blood and appeared to have both legs broken, according to the complaint.

The woman, described as confused and disoriented, did not know she had been hit by a vehicle, the complaint states. She was taken to Allegheny General Hospital in critical condition. She remained in critical condition Friday and was unable to speak, the complaint states.

Witnesses told police they saw a black sedan hit the pedestrian and continue north on Freeport Road.

An officer reviewed footage from cameras on Route 910 and Freeport Road. The suspect vehicle is seen traveling on Route 910 east toward Freeport Road, where a plate-reading camera captured its registration, the complaint states.

The vehicle is seen making a left turn onto Freeport Road, after which it is seen on a surveillance camera at Wendy’s hitting the pedestrian and continuing north on Freeport Road away from the scene, according to the complaint.

After identifying the vehicle and Yost as its owner, police said it was recorded in the area before the collision with no damage and the next day with heavy damage to its hood and roof.

On Friday, McCandless police found the car in an open garage at Yost’s address, where a man appeared to be working on the car’s hood, the complaint states.

Harmar and McCandless officers returned later Friday with search warrants for the car and garage. Yost returned home in the car shortly after officers arrived, the complaint states.

Yost admitted to driving on Freeport Road Thursday night and said he hit something but did not know what it was, the complaint states. He said he turned around at the turnpike and went back to see what he had hit, but said he did not see anything.

Yost told police the windshield was damaged and he had it replaced Friday morning, the complaint states. He had also removed insulation from under the hood because it would not close.

Yost was arraigned Saturday and released on an unsecured $1,000 bond, according to court records. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 30 before District Judge Michael J. Girardi.


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