While executing an arrest warrant on Raymond Edward Poust Jr. at his Wolf Township home at 56 Orchard Avenue on the morning of Jan. 28, state troopers seized a .22 caliber rifle that had an obliterated serial number, according to an affidavit. The owner of the home had permitted troopers to search the premises. Poust, wanted on a state police felony theft charge for allegedly stealing a pickup truck in the township on Nov. 9, was found hiding in a back bedroom, it was stated in the court document. Poust, 22, was taken into custody and remains jailed in lieu of $15,000 bail. He has since waived his preliminary hearing not only on this charge, but also a state police felony charge of illegal possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number which was filed on the day of his arrest. Bail in this case was $35,000 bail.

In yet another criminal case, the state Game Commission has charged Poust with 26 counts of illegally taking or possessing wildlife (deer) that were discovered at various locations throughout the county, according to court records filed at the office of District Judge Kirsten Gardner. The illegal deer possessions are alleged to have taken place during a five-month period beginning in late October, 2023, it was stated in an affidavit. Three of the 26 counts are misdemeanors while the remaining 23 are summary offenses. The game commission has also charged him with one misdemeanor count of selling or bartering an antlerless deer for $60. Bail in this case was set at $15,000.