Police accuse East Deer man of dealing heroin after trooper finds stamp bags in traffic stop

An East Deer man was accused of being a drug dealer after a state trooper said he found stamp bags of heroin when he pulled over a pickup for speeding and driving with an expired license.

Travis Joseph Black, 44, of the 300 block of Crawford Run Road was charged with a felony count of possession of drugs with the intent to deliver along with counts of drug possession and citations for driving without a license and speeding, according to a criminal complaint.

Black faces a preliminary hearing before District Judge Carolyn Bengel on Nov. 9, according to court records.

A state police corporal wrote in Black’s arrest papers that he was on patrol along Route 28 in East Deer shortly after 7 p.m. Jan. 13 when he saw a Ford Ranger owned by a driver with an expired license.

The trooper determined that Black was driving after pulling up alongside the vehicle, the complaint said.

Black’s vehicle was clocked traveling 72 mph in a posted 55-mph zone and was pulled over near the exit to Tarentum, the complaint said.

The trooper said Black had 82 stamp bags of heroin in his possession.

Black told the officer that he typically travels to Homewood every other day to buy two bricks of heroin, the complaint said.

A brick of heroin typically has 50 stamp bags. Black said he sells bundles of stamp bags for between $60 and $70. A bundle usually consists of 10 stamp bags.