Monessen man faces drug, gun charges after traffic stop

A Monessen man was arrested Saturday in Rostraver after state police said they found him in possession of a gun and drugs, according to court papers.

Rashawn Ford, 25, is charged with drug possession, weapons violations and other offenses.

State police said they pulled over a car with an expired registration that was headed north on the Vance DeiCas Memorial Highway in Rostraver at 5 p.m. While talking to the driver, identified by police as Ford, troopers noticed numerous empty prescription pill bottles lying on the floor of the car, according to court papers.

Investigators in court papers referenced recent violence and drug activity in the Monessen and Donora area as a factor in the decision to ask him to step out of the vehicle. Troopers said they found 50 bricks of suspected heroin and a loaded pistol in Ford’s pants. Three more bricks and three bundles of drugs were seized from his jacket pocket, according to court papers.

Troopers said a previous felony conviction prohibited him from having a firearm. Ford posted $75,000 bond Sunday, according to online court records. He did not have an attorney listed in online court records. He could not be reached.

During the traffic stop, according to court papers, Ford admitted to being accused of conspiracy in a June 2017 shooting in Monessen that wounded a man. A mistrial was declared in January 2019 in the case and he rejected a proposed plea deal from prosecutors. Ford ultimately pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and was sentenced to a year on probation.

Conspiracy to commit homicide and robbery charges were dismissed, according to online court records.

He served a jail sentence in 2016 at the Westmoreland County Prison in two felony drug cases filed by Monessen police.