Hempfield man gets at least 9 months in jail for scrap metal thefts at Central Westmoreland CTC

Oct. 12—A Hempfield man was sentenced Thursday to nine to 23 months at the Westmoreland County Prison for stealing thousands of dollars worth of scrap metal and damaging three vehicles while trespassing on Central Westmoreland Career & Technology Center property.

Jason Allan Edwards, 34, was ordered to serve 10 years on probation after the jail term and pay $28,000 in restitution to the school.

Edwards was arrested in March after officials at the New Stanton school told state police they had been having issues with scrap metal and vehicle parts being stolen since early January, according to court papers. He was seen there Jan. 7 and 28 and Feb. 15 and 16.

Surveillance footage from Jan. 7 showed him stealing scrap metal, police said. A Chevrolet Blazer, Subaru Forester and Cadillac DeVille had parts missing and thousands of dollars in damages, police said.

Edwards pleaded guilty Thursday to charges of theft, defiant trespass, burglary and criminal mischief in three cases. He was credited with time served since March 24.

Renatta Signorini is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Renatta by email at rsignorini@triblive.com or via Twitter .