North Huntingdon Township, PA. — On Tuesday, around 9:00 a.m., a male walked into the Bob Evans Restaurant located at 8989 Route 30 in North Huntingdon Township. The male laid a note on the counter near a worker at Bob Evans. The note said there was an active shooter threat and multiple bombs at Norwin High School and at Jeannette High School. Norwin School District and Jeannette School District were notified about the threat. North Huntingdon Police was in constant communication with Jeannette Police during the entirety of the incident. North Huntingdon officers responded to Bob Evans Restaurant and to the Norwin Senior High School.
Officers at Bob Evans were able to obtain a photo of the male who passed the note. That male was seen leaving in a black Dodge Charger. The license plate on the black Dodge Charger was registered to a KIA from Robbins Station Road in North Huntingdon Township. North Huntingdon Officers went to the residence on Robbins Station Road and discovered the KIA had the license plate removed from it.
A North Huntingdon officer who was going to the Robbins Station Road address then noticed the black Dodge Charger with the stolen KIA license plate on it. The officer performed a traffic stop on the black Dodge Charger. The driver of the vehicle was identified as Luke Joseph Dell age 35 from Beavercreek OH. Dell admitted he passed the note at Bob Evans restaurant in order to get police officers to respond to the threat at the school. Dell was wearing a mask when he passed the note at Bob Evans and still had the mask on when he was taken in custody.
#BREAKING: North Huntington Police tell me the suspect Luke Dell, 35, was wearing a mask that made him appear to be twice his age. Police said he allegedly made the threat against the 2 schools to distract police while he tried to rob a bank. He never made it to the bank. @KDKA pic.twitter.com/ZraeA5LDqa
— MEGHAN SCHILLER (@MeghanKDKA) October 22, 2019
Dell stated he was then going to attempt a bank robbery in the Circleville area of North Huntingdon. North Huntingdon officers took Dell into custody at before he could get to the bank.
As a precaution, Norwin School District decided to dismiss the high school students so a check of the school could be done by bomb detection dogs. The Bomb Detection Dogs checked the Norwin High School and the school was deemed to be clear. A bomb detection dog did alert on Dell’s vehicle so Pennsylvania State Police HDES (Hazardous Device and Explosives Section) were called in to check Dell’s vehicle. No explosives were found in Dell’s vehicle.
Dell is going to be charged with Terroristic Threats, Causing or Risking Catastrophe, Reckless Threat to use Weapon of Mass Destruction and Theft (of the license plate).
North Huntingdon Police would like to thank all the assisting agencies. Jeannette Police, Irwin Police, PA State Police, Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Department, Westmoreland County Park Police, Allegheny County Police, Middlesex Township Police, Westmoreland County Emergency Management, Circleville Volunteer Fire Department, North Huntingdon EMS, Norwin School District and Jeannette School District.
