Two charged after Tamaqua incident
A suspicious vehicle call on June 8 resulted in the arrests of two people by Tamaqua police.
Officers were called to the 400 block of Willing Street at 3:28 a.m. and found a 2000 Chevrolet Blazer that was listed by Summit Hill Police as being taken without permission. Inside the parked vehicle, asleep, was Steven Holtzer of Lansford. He didn't have the keys to the Blazer telling police he was with several other people but didn't know where they went.
Holtzer's father, the owner of the vehicle, took him home and told police no one else had permission to drive the SUV.
Just about one hour later officers followed the Blazer as it traveled east on Broad Street, identifying the driver as Douglas J. Schartel Jr., 34, of Tamaqua. They conducted a traffic stop.
Schartel had a hypodermic needle on his lap and several blue and white baggies sticking out of his jacket pocket. The baggies contained a total of 42 bundles of suspected heroin.
A records check found outstanding warrants for the arrest of Schartel from Dauphin County, and for one of his passengers, Kyle Franz, 22, of Tamaqua, with a warrant from Carbon County. Both men were held in the Tamaqua jail until transferred to the other counties.
Schartel was also charged with possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and driving with a DUI related suspended license.
