More Alleged Metal Thieves Arrested

Two alleged accomplices of a Bethlehem man accused of stealing more than $900 in copper and aluminum from a Bethlehem business and selling the material so that they could buy heroin were charged Thursday night.

Court records say Matthew Allen Scartoli, 23, of 1040 Lehigh St., Easton, and Stephanie Lauren Roth, 19, of 3061 Westminster Road, Bethlehem, admitted to their participation in the thefts. They were arraigned by on-duty District Judge Robert Hawke of Lehigh Township on charges of  theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property and criminal conspiracy.

They were released on $10,000 unsecured bail each.

Earlier Thursday, against Justin Theodore Slack, 23, of 1451 Iron St. said he admitted to taking part in the theft of aluminum pipes, copper wire and welding lead copper from , 1428 Mauch Chunk Road. Slack, arraigned before District Judge James Narlesky, also was released on $10,000 bail.

Court papers said the trio would take the stolen metal to scrap yards in Easton or Catasauqua to sell, using the money so they could buy heroin. Slack told police he started stealing from the company after he was fired from a job there in November.

According to court papers, Scartoli and Roth told police they met up with Slack from late December to early January to go to a wooded area on the 1400 block of Cortland Street – not far from PA Perlite – so that Slack and Scartoli could retrieve the metal that Slack placed there.

Slack, meanwhile, told police that he and Scartoli would go through the wooded area on Cortland Street and down the hill to the Perlite property. Slack said he got into the property through a hole in the fence and entered a yellow-colored building through a hole in the bottom of the bulding.

Slack said Scartoli followed him into the building, from which they stole copper. Slack said they entered an adjacent building through a window and stole more copper. He said the aluminum pipes were on a pallet in the enclosed yard.
 
Roth drove a black truck that hauled the metal to the scrap yards, the court papers said.

The three were in which they would allegedly steal materials from the Arbor Fence Co. in Bethlehem Township and take them to sell to H. Blinderman & Son, a scrap metal yard in Hellertown.