Bridgeport man jailed for Upper Pottsgrove incident

NORRISTOWN » A Bridgeport man is on his way to jail for a domestic-related incident with his onetime girlfriend and for illegal drug activity in Upper Pottsgrove.

Jarred Joseph Peake, 25, of the 700 block of Green Street, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 9 to 23 months in the county jail after he pleaded guilty to charges of possession with intent to deliver controlled substances and simple assault in connection with the May 2019 incident in Upper Pottsgrove.

Judge Cheryl L. Austin, who accepted a plea agreement in the case, also ordered Peake to complete three years’ probation following parole, meaning he will be under court supervision for about five years.

The judge said Peake is eligible for the jail’s work release program during his period of incarceration. Peake was ordered to have no contact with his ex-girlfriend.

An investigation began about 2:30 a.m. May 26, when a woman called 911 and alleged her boyfriend, Peake, grabbed her during a domestic incident inside a vehicle and that she was hiding in the woods at the intersection of Evans and West Moyer roads in Upper Pottsgrove.

Police subsequently stopped a vehicle that matched the description

provided by the victim and found Peake in the driver’s seat, according to the criminal complaint filed by Upper Pottsgrove Police Officer Sean Farrell.

“As the vehicle door opened with the driver’s window down, I could detect a strong odor of marijuana coming from inside the vehicle,” Farrell alleged, adding he observed a used blunt, a small amount of marijuana in a clear bag and two knives in the center console.

As police removed the bag allegedly containing marijuana they also noticed a second larger bag “with a clear crystal substance,” according to the criminal complaint. Police recognized the substance as “crystal meth.”

In the trunk of the vehicle, police found a grocery bag that contained sandwich-type bags containing marijuana as well as a scale and unused bags commonly used for packaging.

The investigation determined the total weight of the methamphetamine was 30 grams while the total weight of the marijuana was 66 grams, according to the criminal complaint.

At that time, Peake told police he had been in an argument with his girlfriend but that she ran off.

Police found the victim in a wooded area nearby. The victim told police that she and Peake had argued while she was driving the vehicle and that he placed his hand over her mouth and grabbed the steering wheel and almost crashed the vehicle, according to court papers.

The victim told police she stopped the vehicle and started to jump out while Peake grabbed her by the leg to try to prevent her from exiting the vehicle.

“(The victim) said she pulled away and ran toward the rear of the vehicle and ran into the woods. She said she thought he was really going to hurt her,” Farrell alleged.

Peake then got into the driver’s seat of the vehicle and drove off.

Other charges of possession of controlled substances, possession of drug paraphernalia, harassment and driving without a license were dismissed against Peake as part of the plea agreement.