-from tribune-democrat.com-

By Sandra K. Reabuck

EBENSBURG — In one of Cambria County’s largest drug investigations, which culminated Wednesday, authorities have arrested about 60 suspected drug dealers during the last 2½ weeks, District Attorney Patrick Kiniry announced.

They are accused of trafficking in heroin, crack cocaine, powdered cocaine and prescription drugs, mainly OxyContin, throughout the county.

During the various raids and arrests, officers seized illegal drugs with a street value of $30,000, about $7,000 in cash and one stolen firearm, the district attorney said.

Warrants are out for the arrests of 11 more people, Kiniry said at a news conference at the county courthouse.

While the arrests may make “a dent” in drug trafficking, Kiniry said that others soon would be on the streets filling the void.

“This is a never-ending battle,” he said. “There’s never a day you can’t buy (illegal) drugs in Cambria County.”

Kiniry was joined by state Attorney General Tom Corbett, who said dealing of prescription drugs is on the upswing not only in Cambria County but statewide.

Corbett said his office now will have investigators working closely with the county drug task force, which is under the jurisdiction of the DA.

Cambria also will be part of the Central Region because much of the trafficking flows between Altoona and Cambria County, he said.

Kiniry said the first raid was April 7, when three dealers were taken into custody at a Grove Avenue house in Johnstown’s Moxham section. Cocaine with a street value of more than $12,000 was seized along with $1,200 in cash, he said.

One of the defendants, Caron Howling, was described by Kiniry as a high-level dealer responsible for distributing tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of cocaine a month in Greater Johnstown.

On April 10, the task force and Richland Township police arrested four people at the Richland Motel. Police believe they were selling heroin from a motel room.

Four days later, April 14, Dorian “Doe-Doe” Stephens and James Jamel “Gotti” Blocken were arrested in the city on charges of selling both crack and powder. Stephens was identified as a high-level dealer.

On April 15, Cirilito “C” Cheatham, considered a high-level dealer of crack cocaine, was arrested in Johnstown.

From that arrest, three others were taken into custody – Rogelin “Roe” Lopez, also described as a high-level drug dealer of cocaine, Melody Harris and Myra Coleman.

Kiniry estimated that Lopez and Cheatham were dealing $1,000 worth of crack a week in the city’s Moxham and Hornerstown areas.

As a result of those arrests, officers searched a house in the 700 block of Highland Avenue in Johnstown, where $1,000 in cash and crack cocaine with a street value of $1,000 was seized.

The next raid was Monday, when Shy Tyquan Lawton, who allegedly trafficked in crack cocaine, was arrested in the Oakhurst Homes area.

The next day, officers arrested Brian Dupirack, described as a high-level dealer of heroin in the Lilly-Portage area. He was supplying more than $1,000 worth of heroin a day, Kiniry said.

The arrests also included suspects believed to be dealing in $5,000 worth of heroin and pills in Ebensburg, Nanty Glo, Northern Cambria and Fallentimber.

Most of the suspects were taken into custody early Wednesday in raids carried out by county drug task force officers, local and state police, FBI agents, sheriff’s deputies, probation officers and investigators from the state Attorney General’s Office.

Who’s accused

The following individuals were rounded up in connection with the April drug bust that ended Wednesday. Names follow place of residence:

Johnstown: David Adolph,

Darwin Askew, James Blocken, Jabber Brown, Michael Byrd, Cirilito Cheatham, Myra

Coleman, Norris Collins, Terri Fyock, Nathan Gamble, John Hardison, Hope Harris, Melody Harris, Aleasha Hoffman, Adam Hoke, Caron Howling, Damian Jeffers, P.J. King Sr., P.J. King, Cheryl Kirsch, Thomas Krieger, Shy Tyquon Lawton, Rogelin Lopez, Justin Love, Averi McCall, Mckenneth McDaniel, Alicia

Morris, Donna Munoz, William Nelson, Jerome Rozier, Amber Russell, Larry Shaw, Andrea Sherman, Michael Simms, Carrie Smith, Tyrone Smith, Dorian Stephens, Amy Lyn Stephens and John Taylor.

Mineral Point: Eric Buck.

South Fork: Robert Clifford.

Fallentimber: Robert Cochran.

Gallitzin: Ken Crilley, Shawn Hayes and Mark Wilt.

Windber: John Davis, Keri Lysinger and Jason Russell.

Revloc: Doug Delozier and

Shawna Delozier.

Lilly: Brian Dupirack.

Nanty Glo: Scott Fulton and Jon Litzinger.

Ebensburg: Adam Grove, Christine Ledger, James McClean, Brad Younkin and Caleb Younkin.

Hooversville: Shayna Jarin.

Vintondale: Erick Melius.

Davidsville: Tim Miller.

Homer City: Stacy Turner.