Manheim Township man to face county court after alleged armed ransacking
MANHEIM, PA — A Manheim Township man accused of forcing his way into a woman’s home at gunpoint, stealing her phone and ransacking the residence waived preliminary hearings this month and will have his cases proceed to Lancaster County Court.
Jeremiah Lugo, 21, waived a preliminary hearing before Judge Courtney Monson on Sept. 17 on charges of escape and evading arrest or detention on foot. Two days later he waived another preliminary hearing before Judge Joshua Keller in a separate case charging him with one count of robbery and two counts of burglary.
Prosecutors say the incident began the morning of Sept. 4 when Lugo entered the victim’s home in the 300 block of Hawthorne Drive in Manor Township through an unlocked door while brandishing a handgun shortly before 10:30 a.m. The victim told police Lugo took her phone and destroyed items including a coffee table and vases, causing an estimated $1,300 in damage. Surveillance video inside the home is reported to show Lugo carrying the handgun, overturning the coffee table and throwing the victim’s phone across the street. Officers later located the phone in the yard of a nearby residence.
Police say Manheim Township officers went to Lugo’s residence in the 1000 block of Center Avenue shortly after 5 p.m. the following evening to arrest him. Investigators allege Lugo first attempted to flee, encountered an officer, ignored commands, then retreated and barricaded himself in the basement. Repeated commands to surrender were reportedly ignored before Lugo came upstairs and was taken into custody.
Lugo remains held at Lancaster County Prison on combined bail of $125,000. Manheim Township Police Cpl. Kyle Carner and Manor Township Police Officer Rockie Tice filed the charges. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Key Points
- Jeremiah Lugo waived preliminary hearings Sept. 17 and Sept. 19; cases to proceed to county court
- Lugo is charged with robbery, two counts of burglary, escape and evading arrest after an alleged Sept. 4 armed ransacking
- Victim’s phone recovered, surveillance footage reportedly corroborates the victim’s account; Lugo remains jailed on $125,000 bail
