Multi-district drug bust leads to Jennerstown

A drug raid in Somerset County led to an arrest, suspected heroin and methamphetamine, $10,000 cash and the allegation from the state Attorney General's office that the suspect is part of a multi-county drug ring.

The raid occurred Tuesday at a residence along Twin Hills Road in Jenner Township, where Tony Burnsworth, 44, of Friedens, was arrested on a warrant and later arraigned in Allegheny County on the charges.

"This is likely to be part of a vast ring encompassing multiple counties and I am proud to stop one more stream of drugs coming into the county," said Somerset County Acting District Attorney Molly Metzgar.

Burnsworth will face trial with two co-defendants on the illegal drug-related charges in Allegheny County, according to court documents. He is currently on probation in a separate drug case in Westmoreland County from 2019.

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The multi-county raid was in conjunction with the state Office of the Attorney General; City of Pittsburgh Bureau of Police; Monroeville Police Department; Penn Hills Police Department, and Wikinsburg Police Department. Somerset County Sheriff's Office and the Somerset County Drug Task Force Team assisted in the local raid.

The investigation began in May 2021 into William Ely, 41, of Wilkinsburg, and Jaylon Brock and Burnsworth for possession of and intent to traffic mass amounts of fentanyl into the community, according to a news release from Attorney General Josh Shapiro's office

With recommendations from the 48th Statewide Investigating Grand Jury, charges were brought against the three men as part of an investigation into drug trafficking in Allegheny County.

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“14 Pennsylvanians die from opioids every day, and we will not sit idly by when dealers peddle poisons and try to profit from devastating our communities,” Shapiro said. “With two guns recovered from these searches, including an automatic assault rifle, this is a firm reminder that drug trafficking is a violent enterprise."

The Attorney General's office said agents learned during the investigation that Ely was allegedly supplying roughly 150 bricks of heroin/fentanyl, or up to 7,500 doses, a week to Brock and Burnsworth. Brock allegedly sold the drugs supplied by Ely in Pittsburgh while Burnsworth would transport the majority of the drugs to sell in Somerset County, according to the Attorney General's office.

On July 30, 2021, agents from the Office of Attorney General Bureau of Narcotics Investigations executed a search warrant on Ely’s Wilkinsburg residence and a Hill District address where they reported they recovered 80 grams of fentanyl/heroin, 769 grams of cocaine, a kilo press for bulk packaging, $134,815.00 in cash, and two firearms, including an AR-style rifle. Ely is a convicted felon who is not legally able to possess a firearm.

The investigation led agents to two additional locations in the Hill District affiliated with Brock where, during the search, they seized a total of 291.2 grams of fentanyl, 19.1 grams of cocaine, and $10,600.00 in cash, according to the Attorney General's office. The total street value of all of the drugs seized during the investigation is estimated at more than $217,000.

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Burnsworth, along with Ely and Brock, have been charged with felony possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance; corrupt organization; conspiracy and criminal use of communication facility; and misdemeanor conspiracy and possession. Ely was also charged for illegally possessing a firearm. The cases are being prosecuted by Senior Deputy Attorney General Tomm Mutschler in Allegheny County.