NEW CASTLE —
A Mahoningtown man is accused of robbing a couple then barricading himself inside his house.
New Castle police resorted to tear gas to drive him out.
Around 10 p.m. Saturday, police went to the 234 Wayne St. home of William A. Frazier, 34, who they said was armed and hiding upstairs.
Five officers were at the scene and said Frazier was in an upstairs window looking out. One officer went to the bottom of the stairs and told Frazier he should identify himself and go to the top of the stairs.
According to police, Frazier replied, “I have a shotgun.”
Deeming the situation a barricade, the police assisted two other occupants, one of them wheelchair-bound, safely out of the house.
The New Castle special response team was activated and police cleared everyone out of homes in the vicinity.
The team then deployed tear gas inside the house and Frazier exited through the front door and was arrested.
The incident stemmed from an earlier report from a man and woman. They told police they had been at Frazier’s house to look at a phone he was selling. While they were in the car, Frazier grabbed $80 from the woman’s wallet, the couple reported.
They said they drove away and, while stopped at a traffic light on Liberty Street, Frazier got out of a car, walked over to them and sprayed them with pepper spray.
Frazier is charged with robbery, terroristic threats, theft, receiving stolen property, simple assault and resisting arrest.
He was arraigned by District Judge Scott McGrath and lodged in the Lawrence County jail in lieu of $10,000 bond.
(Email: dwachter@ncnewsonline.com)
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