District Court: Former Club Manager Accused of Theft

A former food manager at a local golf club is accused of stealing $1,800 from the business, according to .

Dawn Penzera, 39, of Greensburg, is charged with two counts of theft and one count of providing false identification to law enforcement. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for next week.

Bell Acres police said Penzera was food manager at the Sewickley Heights Golf Club when she was given $1,800 to pay an entertainment company for services provided on Aug. 26. But a manager at the private club told police the company was never paid.

Penzera was in contact with the entertainment company, informing them numerous times that they would get their money, police said.

Police said Penzera told the company she had cashed the check and deposited the funds in her personal account and would send a personal check, but never made good on the promise. On Oct. 25, the company notified officials, who in turn notified police. 

Bank statements showed Penzera cashed the check Aug. 31. In reviewing her job application, police learned that she had provided the golf club a false identity, listing her name as “Dawn Lackey.” Police said Penzera had been terminated Aug. 29, but did not specify a reason.

Police said when officers interviewed Penzera, she also gave a false Social Security number and never complied with a police request for a copy of the card or her driver’s license. Police said officers were able to obtain her criminal history records and a search warrant for her bank account.

Records showed the funds were deposited into her account, where police said they remained until the bank received a grievance from the golf club.

The following people were charged and scheduled for preliminary hearings Jan. 24 at District Judge Robert Ford's office in Leetsdale.

Waived

• Brien Yingling, 44, Leet Township, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and reckless driving. Leetsdale police reported an officer saw Yingling sitting at a light Oct. 8 at the intersection of Broad and Beaver streets in Leetsdale for about two minutes, before his car turned left onto Beaver and swerving into the opposite lane. Police said Yingling failed a field-sobriety test and submitted to a blood-alcohol test at Heritage Valley Sewickley Hospital. Police did not report the results.

• Matthew Tyson, 29, of Leet, was charged with theft, receiving stolen property and criminal conspiracy. Sewickley police said Tyson stole silver from a borough residence and sold some of it Nov. 21 to Atlantic Gold Exchange in Robinson in exchange for $347. Police said Shawn Moore of Sewickley gave Tyson a ride to Yuriy’s where the two sold a silver pot in exchange for $800.

• Joshua Shields, 21, of , was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and driving with an open container. Leetsdale police said Shields was found slumped over the wheel Nov. 13 on Beaver Street while the vehicle was running. Police also saw an open can of beer. Police reported his blood-alcohol level was 0.178 percent, above the state’s legal limit of 0.08 percent.

• , 19, of Moon, was charged with two counts each of burglary and criminal trespass, six counts of theft, four counts of receiving stolen property, and three counts of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. Allegheny County police said Jaquay forced his way into Herbst Automotive on Thorn Street twice in November and stole a laptop, $20 in cash and keys belonging to several vehicles, along with four cars from the lot.

Reduced

• Gabriel Strano, 26, of Ambridge, was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and speeding. Leetsdale police reported officers stopped Strano’s pickup Dec. 7 for speeding on Route 65. Police said Strano had a warrant for his arrest out of Monroe County, PA. He was taken into custody and found with a marijuana pipe in his pickup. Charges were reduced to disorderly conduct and Strano was ordered to pay a $300 fine plus court costs.

• Matthew Schmidt, 32, of Leet Township, was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia. reported officers stopped a pickup Dec. 7 for speeding on Route 65. Police said Schmidt was a passenger and during a search he was found with a marijuana pipe in his pocket. Charges were reduced to disorderly conduct and Schmidt was ordered to pay a $300 fine plus court costs.

Postponed

• Matthew Fargo, 25, of Washington, PA, was charged with driving under the influence, driving while suspended, and having an open container. Leetsdale police reported Fargo’s vehicle was stopped Nov. 26 by the West Hills DUI Task Force. Police said Fargo failed a field-sobriety test and submitted to a blood-alcohol test at Sewickley Hospital. Police did not report the results. He was found to have an open container of whiskey in the vehicle, police said.

• Shawn Moore, 30, of Rhodes Avenue, Sewickley, was charged with receiving stolen property and criminal conspiracy. Sewickley police said Moore gave Matthew Tyson a ride to Yuriy’s where the two sold a silver pot in exchange for $800.

• Anselmo G. Dascenzo, 21, of Blairsville, PA, was charged with simple assault and harassment. said Dascenzo punched a woman in the face and struck her head off a wall Jan. 14 in the emergency room at Heritage Valley Sewickley Hospital.