Latrobe man paroled for Hollow Tavern arson accused of 2nd DUI since 2021 release

A man paroled just over a year ago after serving more than a decade in state prison for setting fire to the landmark Hollow Tavern in 2008 was arraigned Monday on DUI and related charges for a Christmas Eve motorcycle crash on Route 30 that injured his passenger.

It is the second DUI arrest for Edgar Clinton Wiltrout, 69, of Latrobe since his March 2021 release after serving time for the arson, which caused about $1 million in damage to the Unity restaurant.

State police filed the complaints against Wiltrout after receiving toxicology test results indicating his blood-alcohol level was more than 0.16%, or more than twice the legal threshold for driving in Pennsylvania, when he crashed his 2005 Harley-Davidson Dyna Glide motorcycle near the East Pittsburgh Street overpass in Hempfield about 1:35 p.m. Dec. 24.

Wiltrout, formerly of Ligonier, was convicted in 2009 of setting the Feb. 23, 2008, fire that destroyed the well-known restaurant that existed for more than 70 years in the Loyalhanna Gorge on Route 30 between Latrobe and Ligonier.

He was sentenced to serve 10 to 28 years in prison.

According to trial testimony, Wiltrout was upset when former Hollow Tavern manager and former owner Charles “Chip” Santone failed to repay a $1,000 loan, and he also was angry that a girlfriend, a cook at the tavern, had lost her job.

Although the restaurant was rebuilt, it never regained its former popularity.

The state Department of Corrections reported Monday that Wiltrout, formerly of Ligonier, was paroled from SCI Mercer on March 20, 2021, after serving 10 years and 2 months of his arson sentence.

In the most recent DUI case, Trooper David Vinkler reported that Wiltrout, who was driving eastbound with a female passenger, lost control while rounding a curve, causing his bike to slide 27 feet before striking a concrete barrier and then continuing for another 204 feet on its side before coming to a stop in the left travel lane.

Wiltrout suffered a serious head injury and was flown to UPMC Presbyterian hospital in Pittsburgh for treatment, Vinkler said. Wiltrout’s passenger, who was not identified in court records, also was injured and was taken by ambulance to AHN Forbes Hospital in Monroeville for treatment.

Wiltrout also has a preliminary hearing May 9 in connection with a 12:35 a.m. Oct. 8 traffic stop on James Street in Latrobe. In that case, he is accused of pulling out of a gas station with the passenger door of his 2006 Ford sedan still open and not using turn signals. City police allege he had alcohol and methamphetamine in his system.

In addition to the DUI charge in the Dec. 24 crash, Wiltrout is charged with careless driving, driving at an unsafe speed, driving without a license, reckless driving and possession of drug paraphernalia. Police said they recovered a suspected marijuana smoking pipe from a leather bag attached to the handlebars of the bike.

Wiltrout, who did not have an attorney listed in court documents, could not be reached for comment. He was released on $25,000 unsecured bond pending a preliminary hearing May 15.