Police: Moon Resident Threatens Neighbor With a Machete

A Moon resident accused of threatening his neighbor with a machete says he wa protecting his property.

Kevin Loy, 49, of Oak Drive, Moon, is charged with aggravated assault, simple assault, terroristic threats and public drunkenness.

Police said Loy ran out of his house at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, June 23 and threatened neighbor Phillip Turner with a machete while Turner and his girlfriend walked past Loy’s home. 

Turner told police he and Loy had argued a few days earlier, but that he ignored Loy this time because he was drunk. Police said Loy went to Taylor’s back door waving the machete and threatening to chop him up and bury him.

Police spoke to Loy, who police said admitted to having a machete and threatening his neighbor with it because he was defending his property. Police found the machete on Loy’s kitchen table and seized the weapon.

Loy was taken to Allegheny County Jail, where he remains unable to post $25,000 bond. A hearing is scheduled for July 2.

Moon Police responded to the following recent incidents. Each reflects police records and is not an indication of guilt.

Property Theft

Police received a report at 6 p.m. Monday, June 24 regarding an instrument panel stolen from a vehicle at Moon Hyundai on University Boulevard. Police said the purple 2001 Honda CRV station wagon was last checked at 4 p.m. that day and was locked and undamaged. The mileage should have been 98,200 but without the panel, police said the vehicle can’t be resold because the stolen part puts the original mileage in question.

Firearms Violation

Shawn Taylor, 22, of Pittsburgh is charged with carrying a firearm without a license. Police received two reports at 6 a.m. June 19 of a suspicious male on Ewing Mill Road. Police found Taylor sitting on a landscaping wall in front of a residence in the 200 block. Taylor told police he’d been walking from the Mall at Robinson and needed to rest while waiting for his girlfriend to pick him up. Police offered a courtesy ride and asked if Taylor was carrying any weapons. Taylor showed a 9mm semi-automatic handgun in his waistband that contained 15 rounds. Police said the gun was licensed to Taylor, but he didn’t have a license to carry.

Possession Charged

James Lawson, 61, of Patton Drive, Moon, charged with possession of marijuana. Police said officers responded to Lawson’s home at 3:59 a.m. Sunday, June 23 for a residential burglar alarm. Lawson’s wife was out of town and he didn’t have the proper code to silence the alarm, so police wanted his identification to ensure he was in fact the homeowner. While inside the home, an officer noticed marijuana in a mason jar on the coffee table that Lawson admitted belonged to him. 

Assault Reported

Police received a report at 3:47 p.m. Monday, June 24 about a possible assault in progress near Our Lady of Sacred Heart in the cemetery behind the church.

Two witnesses told police that Terry Clawson, 22, of Pittsburgh, met a woman to see his 2-month-old child and started arguing, demanding to see the woman’s phone so he could read through her texts.

Police said Clawson found a text he didn’t like, accused the woman of cheating and threw the phone at her, smashing it to the ground. While holding the baby, witnesses told police Clawson wouldn’t support the infant’s head although he was warned the child could be injured, police said.  At one point, police said Clawson grabbed the woman's neck, pulled her by the ponytail, shoved her to the ground and put her in a headlock.

Police said the woman was crying and trying to walk away, but Clawson led her to the cemetery, where officers found the two. Police said the woman looked disheveled and had bruises consistent with an assault.

Clawson was charged with simple assault and taken to Allegheny County Jail, where he remains unable to post $1,000 bond.

False Imprisonment Alleged

Police received a report at 7:14 a.m. Friday, June 21 from a woman who said Christopher M. Ciarallo, 21, of Flaugherty Run Road, Lot 8, Moon, invited her to stay overnight, but became verbally abusive.

As she tried to leave, police said Ciarallo and his mother blocked her from exiting, but she pushed her way through suffering bruises and a bump to the back of her head. Police said Ciarallo denied hitting her and alleged the fight was over $75 missing from his wallet.

The woman was taken to Heritage Valley Sewickley hospital. Ciarallo is charged with simple assault and false imprisonment.

Assault Charge

James R. Spirko, 45, of Norman Drive, Moon, is charged with simple assault, reckless endangerment and resisting arrest. Police were called Sunday, June 23 to Sheetz for a situation involving Spirko’s 18-year-old daughter spending time with her estranged boyfriend, who has filed assault charges filed against.

Police were speaking to the girl’s mother and the boyfriend was backing his car out to leave when Spirko arrived.

Police said Spirko stormed the boyfriend’s car, then reached in and grabbed him by the neck while trying to control the vehicle. Police were able to handcuff Spirko after a short struggle.

DUI Charges

Roy West, 32, of Connellsville, PA charged with driving under the influence and failing to obey traffic control signals. Police said West’s vehicle was pulled over 12:01 a.m. June 19 at the intersection of Patton Drive and University Boulevard after he ran a red light. Police reported a blood-alcohol level of 0.190 percent, above the state’s legal limit of 0.08 percent.

Dana Hinchberger, 19, of Sarver, charged with driving under the influence, underage drinking, minor driving with alcohol in system. Police said Hinchberger was stopped June 15 at Beaver Grade Road and University after going 55 mph in a 35 mph zone. Police did not report a blood-alcohol level.

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