ALLENTOWN, PA — A City of Allentown employee who claimed to find a noose on her desk in January is now facing charges for allegedly fabricating the incident after DNA evidence linked her to the object, police said.
On January 10, at approximately 7:11 a.m., LaTarsha Brown reported to work at City Hall and alerted the Allentown Police Department minutes later that a noose had been placed on her desk.
Key Points
- LaTarsha Brown reported a noose on her desk in City Hall on January 10.
- DNA from the noose matched Brown’s own DNA, with no other matches found.
- Brown is now charged with tampering with evidence and filing false reports.
Officers from multiple divisions launched a criminal investigation, seeking to identify who placed the item.
City surveillance footage, access records, and interviews were used to identify who had been on the third floor of City Hall between the afternoon of January 9 and the morning of January 10.
Each employee was asked to submit a buccal swab for DNA testing. Brown initially agreed, then later requested the investigation to be stopped, the police said.
The noose was submitted to the Pennsylvania State Police crime lab on January 14. The Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office later granted a search warrant, allowing investigators to collect a DNA sample from Brown. That sample was obtained on January 24 and sent to the Bethlehem Regional Crime Lab for analysis.
New Jussie Smollett just dropped!
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Allentown, PA employee planted noose on her desk, faces false report charges, cops say. pic.twitter.com/W6TKirxuBp
By March 10, the Pennsylvania State Police Forensic DNA Division confirmed that DNA from both the inner knotted area and outer surface of the noose matched Brown’s DNA. No other employee’s DNA was found on the item, authorities said.
Detective Harold Bonser of the Allentown Police Department filed charges earlier this week, accusing Brown of tampering with or fabricating physical evidence and false reports to law enforcement authorities, both misdemeanors.
“There will be no further comment at this time regarding this investigation,” the Allentown Police Department said in a statement.