A Hempfield man is accused by state police of breaking into a township home Thursday and dragging away a plastic tote full of guns before being confronted by the homeowners and running off, according to court papers.
Timothy John Luchon, 41, was being held without bail at the Westmoreland County Prison on charges of burglary, theft and related offenses.
Troopers were called to the College Avenue home around 6:45 p.m. and two residents reported numerous boxes of ammunition were scattered in their basement, guns missing and the man walking down their driveway carrying the tote, according to court papers. They confronted him at the end of the driveway and the man dropped the tote and fled in a pickup truck parked nearby, police said.
Troopers got a license plate of the truck from surveillance images and a witness who saw it parked along College Avenue. Luchon claimed to be returning the tote to the home, according to court papers.
He refused to give police a DNA sample. Luchon previously was convicted of felony aggravated assault which prohibits him from having a firearm.
He did not have an attorney listed in online court records. A preliminary hearing is set for Sept. 28.
Luchon is on probation in connection with a January 2021 shooting at a home near New Stanton. Authorities said he had a fight with a woman, grabbed her and then shot her in the left ring finger. He hid the gun in an attic and drove the woman to a hospital before fleeing, according to police. He served nine to 23 months in jail and was ordered in May 2022 to spend five years on probation after pleading guilty to aggravated assault and reckless endangerment, according to court records.
