Dec 1, 2014 6 min read

WEST NEWTON – A fourth person was arrested Monday morning in connection with the assault and robbery of a 91-year-old woman inside her Rostraver Township home, just as the preliminary hearing for one of his alleged co-conspirators began and turned contentious when the accused attacker questioned the elderly victim.

Rostraver Township police arrested 52-year-old Darrell Adams at his Greensburg residence and accused him of suggesting to three acquaintances that they rob Frances Tekavec at her home because he borrowed cash from her and knew she held “a large amount of money” in a safe there.

Authorities say Adams did not participate in the Oct. 21 attack that left Tekavec with a broken neck and other back injuries, but he was charged Monday with conspiracy, robbery, burglary, aggravated assault and theft. He was arraigned by District Judge Charles Christner and taken to Westmoreland County jail on $500,000 bond.

That preceded the preliminary hearing for one of the accused attackers, Gregory Howard, 46, of Monessen, who represented himself and at times argued with Tekavec and one of his co-defendants as they testified against him. Howard is accused in the home invasion, along with Lamont Dixon and Brandon Danilchak, both of whom waived their cases to trial.

Still wearing a neck brace and needing some support while walking through the courtroom to testify, Tekavec said she was washing sheets in the basement of her German Street home on the morning of Oct. 21 when a white man knocked on her door. The man, later identified by police as Danilchak, posed as a furniture delivery worker claiming to need her signature. Then Dixon and Howard allegedly rushed in and knocked Tekavec to the ground.

“He grabbed me by my shoulders and threw me clear across the kitchen floor,” Tekavec said. “I was in shock. I thought my back was broken, and my neck. I was in a lot of pain.”

One man got on top of her and held a knife against her, she testified, before he demanded she give them “all of your money.” She gave them $28 in her purse, but they allegedly threatened to kill her poodle if she didn’t open up a safe that contained $900 in cash, gold jewelry, paperwork, precious coins and gifts for her grandchildren.

“I was scared,” she said. “I did what I was supposed to do because I didn’t want him to kill my dog.”

A third man then tied her arms with an electrical cord and bound her feet using a medical stocking, she said. Tekavec testified that she believed it was Howard who tied her up because of his husky stature and voice, although she could see only a small part of his face. Howard took exception and challenged the accusation with some help from James Robinson, a public defender assigned to assist him during the hearing.

“There’s big people all over the world,” Howard said. “There’s billions of obese people in the world.”

That prompted a series of questions from Howard about what her attackers were wearing, including their shoes, and whether she could truly identify them or knew which one of them was holding a knife.

“Oh, good heavens. I was too scared to be checking shoes. I didn’t know what was coming next,” Tekavec said before scolding him from the witness stand. “This is really funny. Stop it.”

Christner allowed the questioning, but asked Howard to be more specific or move on.

“I’m just trying to give this lady every backdoor way out of this. I’m trying to get society to know I wasn’t a part of it,” Howard protested. “I’m talking about her recollection and her credibility. I’m asking you to throw this whole thing out because I don’t know what is going on.”

But even as Howard tried to poke holes in Tekavec’s story, Danilchak, one of the co-defendants, testified that Howard was a part of the home invasion. Danilchak, whose lawyer said he was not offered a plea deal in exchange for his testimony, said Adams told them Tekavec had a “large amount of money,” and that he and Adams planned the home invasion with Dixon and Howard the night before while they were using cocaine.

They arrived in Dixon’s car and began having second thoughts about the robbery, Danilchak testified, but concocted a plan when they saw mattresses being delivered. They came back about an hour later, and Danilchak said he pretended to be the furniture delivery man needing a signature. He used the pay stub of Dixon’s girlfriend, Bobbi Drdul, who is charged with receiving stolen property, as the paperwork and accidentally dropped it inside the home, which led investigators to the men.

Danilchak said Dixon rushed through the door, knocking the victim to the floor before the three of them robbed the home They returned to Howard’s apartment in Monessen and divided up the stolen goods, although Dixon kept the majority of the money, Danilchak said. Adams was supposed to receive $500 cash so he could use it to repay a debt to Tekavec, police said, although it’s unknown if he ever received that money.

Howard disputed Danilchak’s testimony and said he couldn’t be trusted.

“They got a bunch of made-up evidence,” Howard said. “He’s surrounded by sharks in the middle of the ocean, and he’s bleeding.”

Christner acknowledged that Howard had “tricked (Tekavec) up a bit” during cross-examination, but praised her recollection of events and said there was enough evidence to hold him for trial and keep his bond at $1 million. Howard and his two original co-defendants will now face trial on charges of robbery, aggravated assault, theft, receiving stolen property, unlawful restraint and simple assault.

“I think they pretty much convinced me that you were one of those who committed this crime,” Christner said.

Tekavec, who was escorted out of the district judge’s office by her son, Jack, still appeared rattled, and said she was relieved the hearing was over. She said she was “shaking like a leaf” while on the witness stand.

“He deserves what he gets,” she said of Howard. “They have a lifetime ahead of them to think about it.”

Howard, Danilchak and Dixon were returned to Westmoreland County Jail following the hearing. Their formal arraignments on the charges are scheduled for Jan. 21. Dixon also faces charges for an Oct. 22 burglary in Monessen. A preliminary hearing for Adams is set for next Monday.