Pittsburgh police alerted to drug dealer’s threats
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh police have alerted officers that a reputed drug dealer is upset about “new guys” patrolling one of the city’s highest crime areas.
Police officials believe the threat pertains to 13 new officers assigned to walk beats in Homewood, a violent, drug-prone neighborhood.
City public safety spokeswoman Sonya Toler confirmed the internal memo was sent to city officers. The alert tells officers that a witness recently overheard a reputed drug dealer say, “The next time those new guys mess up our business we are going to open up on them.” “Open up” is a street term that refers to gunfire.
Toler wouldn’t comment on the memo except to say, “Criminals don’t like it when police officers do their jobs. And that’s the way we want it.”