Police, April 30

Standard-Speaker, Hazleton, Pa.
·2 min read

Apr. 30—HAZLETON

Traffic stop results in drug charges

Hazleton police charged a man following a June 26 traffic stop, court papers state.

John R. Card, 53, Hazleton, faces possession of a controlled substance, possession of a small amount of marijuana, use or possession of drug paraphernalia and driving under the influence of a controlled substance, along with summary traffic violations. The charges were filed against him Dec. 7 by state police at Hazleton and he was released on his own recognizance April 12 by Magisterial District Judge Joseph Zola, Hazleton.

Police stopped the vehicle he was driving in the area of Boundary and McNair streets for a suspended registration due to insurance cancelation and because the passenger threw a cigarette out of the window. The driver also failed to used a turn signal while making a turn. A search of the vehicle turned up a smoking pipe and vials containing suspected methamphetamine residue, troopers wrote. Card appeared intoxicated and was taken for a blood test that showed positive for THC, amphetamine and methamphetamine, police said.

Man allegedly resisted arrrest

A Hazleton man faces charges after struggling with police who were investigating a disturbance on Sunday.

Villaney Ruiz Diaz, 36, faces resisting arrest, institutional vandalism, disorderly conduct, criminal mischief and three counts each aggravated assault and simple assault.

He was released on $25,000 unsecured bail set Sunday by Magisterial District Judge Matthew Christopher, Shickshinny.

Police said they were called to his home at 428 W. Fourth St., Hazleton, around 1:30 a.m. A woman there reported he took something and was "going crazy," arrest papers state.

Ruiz Diaz also told police he took "something" and didn't feel OK so officers called for an ambulance. While waiting for the ambulance, Ruiz Diaz told police to leave and got up off a chair, refusing to sit back down, police wrote. He pushed two chairs and a kitchen table at police and then struggled with them as they attempted to take him into custody, according to court papers.

He was eventually apprehended but inside the police vehicle, he screamed and banged his head off the vehicle and began to bleed. Police took him to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Hazleton for evaluation but on the way there continued the behavior. He was told multiple times to stop but didn't until police deployed pepper spray, court papers state.