Vandergrift police arrest 2 on warrants, charge woman with exposing kids to booze and drugs in dirty house

A Vandergrift woman is accused of exposing her three children to drugs and alcohol and keeping them in a dirty house that had only one working light bulb and food that was expired or rotting.

Rebecca Elaine Toth, 29, of the 400 block of Jackson Avenue was charged with a felony count of endangering the welfare of children along with two counts of endangering children and three counts of drug possession, which are misdemeanors.

Toth was charged by summons and ordered to appear for a preliminary hearing June 6 before District Judge Cheryl Peck Yakopec, according to court records.

2 others arrested

Police wrote in a criminal complaint that officers executed a search warrant at her home about 8:30 p.m. March 29.

Officers were met at the door by Kevin Alexander II, 27, of Cherry Alley, New Kensington, who was taken into custody on an arrest warrant from the Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Office, the complaint said.

In November, a district judge ordered Alexander to stand trial on a felony strangulation charge and a count of simple assault filed by New Kensington police. According to court records, he failed to appear for a Jan. 4 plea hearing scheduled in Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court.

Alexander is being detained in the Westmoreland County jail after the $40,000 unsecured bond he was out on at the time of his arrest was revoked, court records show.

Police also arrested Timothy William Wolfe, 39, of Apollo, who was wanted on an arrest warrant after failing to show up for court in Armstrong County to face a charge of theft from a motor vehicle filed by state police in March 2022, according to the court docket.

He is being detained in the Westmoreland County jail in lieu of a $5,000 unsecured bond to await trial on the charge.

Police said Alexander had a small bag of marijuana in his pocket and Wolfe was sitting on a crack pipe when they were arrested.

Officers who searched the house said they found a baggie of marijuana “roaches” on a kitchen counter, four empty Fireball whiskey bottles in a cupboard along with more marijuana roaches and crack cocaine that was wrapped in a store receipt.

Police said there was children’s clothing and food scattered around the house, which had only one working lightbulb.

Officers said the house was unsanitary and the refrigerator contained only expired food and alcoholic beverages.

Pots with rotting food were found inside the oven, police said.