2nd man faces felony charges after police say he tried to take blame for gun incident at Harmar motel

A second man has been arrested in connection with an incident last month at a Harmar motel during which a convicted felon who is not allowed to have a gun allegedly pulled a stolen pistol on a couple who were arguing outside their room at 2 a.m.

Harmar police charged Sterling Maurice Smith, 20, of the 200 block of Miller Avenue in Duquesne with felony counts of receiving stolen property and carrying a firearm without a license along with counts of prohibited acts and making a false report to law enforcement.

Smith was released from custody after posting 10% of a $5,000 bond and is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing before District Judge David Sosovicka on Monday.

Police first charged Vincent Johnson III, 22, of the 1600 block of Clarkton Street in Pittsburgh’s Chartiers neighborhood with felony counts of receiving stolen property, illegal possession of a firearm and carrying a firearm without a license, along with altering a firearm, providing false identification and two counts each of making terroristic threats and simple assault.

Johnson was ordered to stand trial on the charges during a preliminary hearing Monday before Sosovicka, according to court records. One terroristic threat and one of the simple assault charges were withdrawn.

The judge also increased Johnson’s bail from a $5,000 cash bond to $75,000 cash, according to court records. He continues to be detained in the Allegheny County Jail in lieu of bond and faces formal arraignment on the charges March 16.

Gun drawn during motel incident

Officers were dispatched shortly after 2 a.m. Jan. 18 to the Days Inn after the front desk clerk reported seeing two men on video surveillance walking outside the building with a gun threatening one of the guests, according to a criminal complaint.

When police arrived, they questioned a man staying at the motel who told them that his brother-in-law was arguing with his girlfriend outside their room when two men came out of a nearby room and tried to intervene, the complaint said.

When the two men were told to “stay back and stay out of our business,” one of them pulled out a gun, threatened them and then put the weapon back into his waistband before the pair returned to their room, police said.

Officers found two men were in the room along with the woman who rented it. She gave them permission to search the room, where they found a pair of 16-round magazines for a pistol, the complaint said. One of the magazines was loaded with five rounds.

Johnson initially gave police a different first name and date of birth, but investigators were able to identify him. They determined he was wanted on several outstanding arrest warrants, the complaint said.

Police said the woman also gave them permission to search her vehicle, where they found a 9 mm Glock pistol with an extended magazine under the front passenger seat, the arrest papers said.

The magazine was loaded with 32 bullets plus one round in the chamber. Police said the gun had been altered so it could fire like a machine gun.

A black bag with ammunition and Johnson’s driver’s license were found next to the gun, police said.

They said two high-capacity magazines and another bag of ammo also were found in the glove box.

Investigators determined that the gun was reported stolen out of Pittsburgh. A criminal background search for Johnson showed he was convicted in 2018 of illegal possession of a firearm by a minor and is no longer allowed to have a gun. He also does not have a permit to carry a gun.

Smith confesses to gun threat, police say

Police said Smith arranged to meet with officers at the Harmar police station Jan. 28 to discuss the incident, according to his arrest papers.

During a recorded interview, Smith recounted the same series of events but told officers that he was the man who pulled the gun out and threatened the couple, not Johnson.

He said he pulled the gun from his waistband after one of the people who was arguing called him a slur, the complaint said.

When the officer asked him why he didn’t call police when he heard the couple arguing outside, he told them he had been drinking and smoking marijuana and “wasn’t thinking right,” the complaint said.

Police wrote in a criminal complaint that video surveillance from the motel shows Johnson, not Smith, had the gun and threatened the couple.

The video shows that after the incident, Johnson left and went to the woman’s vehicle, opened the passenger door and reached toward the front seat before returning to his room, the complaint said.

Police said Smith also does not have a permit to carry a gun.