Woman accused of driving car during crack cocaine bust in New Kensington faces felony charges

The driver of a car that was targeted in an undercover operation that led to the arrest of a suspected crack dealer has been ordered to stand trial on felony drug charges.

Investigators say Tasha Tierra Williams, 41, of the 200 block of 15th Street in Arnold was behind the wheel Nov. 9 when undercover investigators saw a passenger in the car exchange suspected crack cocaine for money, according to her arrest papers.

Police said Williams was driving with a license suspended for DUI, and the car’s registration was expired when narcotics agents witnessed the drug deal in an alley near the intersection of Fourth Avenue and Sixth Street, according to a criminal complaint.

The undercover investigation led to the arrest of Luther Lewis Boyd, 42, of Bedford Avenue in Pittsburgh’s Hill District.

Surveillance results in arrests

Boyd and Williams were arrested during a Nov. 9 sting by agents from the state Attorney General’s Office, the Westmoreland County Drug Task Force and the New Kensington and Lower Burrell police departments.

After arranging a controlled narcotics buy, officers watched Boyd exchange crack cocaine for money, according to court records.

Williams was pulled over on Fifth Avenue with a man seated in the rear seat, but Boyd was gone, police said.

Agents found a bottle with 20.5 grams of suspected fentanyl pills and a scale with crack cocaine residue after she let them search the car, the complaint said.

Williams told police she spotted an agent’s vehicle after leaving the alley; she became suspicious that Boyd might have exchanged drugs for marked bills, the complaint said.

Williams said she dropped Boyd off at the First National Bank in New Kensington to exchange the money for cash that couldn’t be identified by police, according to her arrest papers.

Officers were able to find some of the money when they showed bank employees a photo of Boyd and searched the cash drawers used by the tellers, the complaint said.

A New Kensington police dog was brought in to follow the path Boyd walked after getting out of the vehicle and found a baggie filled with multicolored pills totaling 13.9 grams and an 0.84-gram bag of crack cocaine, police said.

The pills were the same as the ones found inside the vehicle; they tested positive for fentanyl, investigators said.

Video from a security camera in the alley also shows Boyd hiding the drugs under a Crown Royal whiskey bottle, police said.

Charges held for court

Williams was charged with two felony counts of possession of drugs with the intent to deliver along with two counts of driving under the influence with a suspended license and a count of drug possession.

District Judge Frank J. Pallone Jr. ordered Williams to stand trial on all charges during a preliminary hearing Thursday. She was released from custody on a $50,000 unsecured bond and faces formal arraignment April 12 in Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court, according to court records.

Boyd was charged with four felony counts of possession of drugs with the intent to deliver along with two counts of drug possession and a count of tampering with evidence.

Boyd’s preliminary hearing also was held Thursday, which was his birthday. He was ordered by Pallone to stand trial on all charges and was being detained in the Westmoreland County jail in lieu of a $150,000 cash bond, court records show. His formal arraignment before Common Pleas Judge Scott O. Mears is scheduled for April 12.