Former Greensburg Police Chief pleads guilty to methamphetamine and cocaine conspiracy

CONCORD (AP) — Three adults and a pregnant teenager died in a fiery crash as police pursued their vehicle in connection with retail thefts in southeastern Pennsylvania, authorities said.

The car was speeding away from a traffic stop with seven people inside Wednesday afternoon when the driver lost control while using the right shoulder to pass a vehicle that was not involved in the pursuit, state police said. Police had stopped the car shortly after troopers spotted it at a Concord Township shopping center and approached the group, who got back in the car and drove away.

The 7-mile (11.3-kilomater) chase on Route 322 ended after

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A former Arkansas mortuary worker pleaded guilty Thursday to charges that she sold 24 boxes of stolen body parts from medical school cadavers to a Pennsylvania man for nearly $11,000.

She was among several charged recently in what prosecutors have called a nationwide scheme to steal and sell human body parts from an Arkansas mortuary and Harvard Medical School.

Candace Chapman Scott, 37, pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and one count of interstate transportation of stolen property. She had pleaded not guilty when she was indicted last year in the case.

An indictment unsealed last year accused Scott of setting up the transactions with Jeremy Pauley, a Pennsylvania man she met through a Facebook group about “oddities.”

In September, Pauley pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the theft and sale of the body parts from the Arkansas mortuary and Harvard.

Scott was employed at Arkansas Central Mortuary Services, where part of her job was to transport, cremate and embalm remains. The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock has said that’s where the medical school sent remains of cadavers that had been donated for medical students to examine. the car crossed the roadway and struck a concrete bridge embankment, catching fire. Troopers tried to get the occupants out of the car and extinguish the blaze.

The crash killed Isaiah Miller, 20, who was driving; Ikeam Rogers, 20, and Kalyn Billups, 21. Tyjana Motley, 17, who was pregnant, died a short time later at a hospital.

Emergency medical steps were taken in an attempt to save Motley’s child, state police said, but they were unsuccessful.

Three other passengers in the vehicle — two adults and a 16-year-old girl — were being treated for injuries that are not considered life-threatening. No one else was injured in the pursuit or the crash, which are under investigation.

An attorney for Scott declined to comment Thursday afternoon.

Under a plea agreement with Scott, federal prosecutors dropped 10 other wire and mail charges sought against her. She faces up to 10 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine on the transporting stolen property charge. She also faces up to 20 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine on the mail fraud charge.

A sentencing date has not been scheduled.

PITTSBURGH – The former chief of police for Greensburg, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to engaging in a drug conspiracy, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan has announced.

Shawn Denning, 43, of Delmont, Pa., pleaded guilty before United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon to one count of conspiracy to distribute over 50 grams of methamphetamine and a quantity of cocaine.

As part of his guilty plea, Denning admitted that, while serving as a captain of the Greensburg Police Department and continuing through his tenure as chief of the department, he conspired with others to distribute methamphetamine (in the form of fake “Adderall” pills) and cocaine to individuals in the Western District of Pennsylvania and across the country, including in Georgia, Texas, and Oklahoma. Denning boasted to a DEA confidential source that he could connect the source with “heavy hitters” across the country who would deliver drugs through the mail, later sending the source drug menus and prices, vouching for the source to the narcotics suppliers, communicating with the suppliers, and otherwise facilitating narcotics transactions. Toward the end of the investigation, Denning was recorded in an undercover operation discussing the drug conspiracy with the confidential source and admitting to his conduct.

Denning also admitted that he conspired with former Greenburg Police Officer Regina McAtee, whom Denning used to purchase drugs from the suppliers and then as a source for drugs for himself when McAtee received the orders. McAtee was charged by a separate criminal Information and is scheduled to plead guilty on May 1, 2024.

“Instead of catching drug dealers, Shawn Denning chose to be one by participating in a cross-country methamphetamine and cocaine conspiracy,” U.S. Attorney Olshan said. “Holding corrupt public officials accountable when they betray their oath to protect and serve the community remains a priority of this office and our partners in the law enforcement community.”

Judge Bissoon scheduled sentencing for August 13, 2024. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not less than five years and up to 40 years in prison, a fine of up to $5 million, or both. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorney Nicole

Vasquez Schmitt is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Drug Enforcement Administration, United States Postal Inspection Service, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment in this case.

This prosecution is a result of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles high-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten communities throughout the United States. OCDETF uses a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multiagency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.