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Waynesburg man jailed in courthouse vandalism

2 min read

A Waynesburg man is in the Greene County jail on charges he vandalized the Greene County Courthouse and the law office of Attorney Kirk King on five separate occasions.

Justin Ray McGowan, 25, of 23 W. Greene St., was arrested on Monday and held on $25,000 straight cash bond.

McGowan is charged with five felony counts of institutional vandalism, five misdemeanor counts of criminal mischief for damaging property and five summary offenses for disorderly conduct.

According to police, McGowan was caught on a surveillance video covering the front doors of the courthouse and King’s office with eggs and mustard. This allegedly occurred Feb. 6. It was repeated, according to police, Feb. 7, 8 and 9.

On Feb. 10, Waynesburg Borough police Officer Tom Ankrom went inside the courthouse in an effort to catch the suspect in the act. McGowan was allegedly seen climbing the courthouse stairs, removing an item from his pocket and throwing it at the front door.

Ankrom exited the building when he heard something strike the door and ordered McGowan to the ground. According to Ankrom, McGowan turned away from him and began to run. In an effort to stop McGowan, Ankrom used a Taser, striking him in the middle of his back and lower left leg.

McGowan was found to have spray cheese and mustard in his pockets, according to Ankrom. Once in custody, Ankrom videotaped an alleged confession by McGowan in which he admitted to vandalizing the doors of both buildings.

According to the criminal complaint, McGowan also allegedly confessed to turning the water valve on at the courthouse on two occasions, causing the basement area to flood.

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