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Man Wanted in December Shooting Arrested: Police Capture 19-Year-Old Believed to Be Involved in a Home Invasion in Wilkes-Barre.

Posted on: Thursday, 8 June 2006, 06:00 CDT

By Ron Lieback, Wilkes-Barre, Pa., Times Leader

Jun. 8--WILKES-BARRE -- A 19-year-old man wanted by city police on home invasion charges that involved a shooting in December was arrested at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday by the Luzerne County Sheriff's Department.

Jordan T. Stevens, who was also wanted by the sheriff's department on a resisting arrest charges, was apprehended after deputy sheriffs received information that he was residing at his mother's home at 244 East View Drive in the city's Mineral Springs housing complex.

Stevens' girlfriend, Kristi Karkut, 18, of Lincoln Street, Dupont, was also arrested on hindering apprehension charges during the incident, Deputy Sheriff Dave Homschek said.

Homschek said the investigations unit of the sheriff's department received information about Stevens' whereabouts from the maintenance man at the housing complex Monday.

"There were eight of us (deputy sheriffs) and two K-9 that surrounded the house," Homschek said. "Then his girlfriend (Karkut) opened the door."

Homschek said Stevens ran to back door and attempted to flee, but when he realized the house was surrounded, he fled to the second floor.

Once sheriffs gained entrance, Stevens was found in an upstairs bedroom. When the sheriffs conducted a pat-down, Stevens was in possession of a box of .22-caliber bullets, Homschek said.

Homschek said before sheriffs questioned Karkut, they searched the couch she was sitting on and found a .22-caliber handgun rolled in a towel.

"We're thinking it was the gun used in the Dec. 12 shooting in (Wilkes-Barre) city," he said. "The gun was reported stolen by state police in Wyoming."

The Times Leader has reported that a home at 565 N. Franklin St. was invaded in the early morning of hours of Dec. 12.

During the incident, the resident of the home, Joe Jenkins, told reporters two men barged into his home, shot his girlfriend's cousin in the buttocks and held a gun to his 2-year-old son's head.

Jenkins told reporters the two men then ransacked the house looking for money before fleeing.

Authorities said Stevens was one of the men involved in the invasion.

Stevens was wanted on a warrant by the sheriff's department for failing to appear on charges of resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, theft, prowling and loitering from an incident in September 2005.

He was also wanted by Wilkes-Barre Police Department on charges stemming from the home invasion.

Stevens was additionally charged with possession of a firearm, unlicensed firearms, receiving stolen property and possession of drug paraphernalia stemming from Wednesday's incident.

Karkut was charged with receiving stolen property and hindering apprehension.

Both were arraigned before District Judge Diana Malast, Plains Township. Stevens was taken to the Luzerne County Correction Facility for lack of $125,000 bail from city police and $75,000 from the sheriff's department. Karkut was also taken to the prison for lack of $10,000 secured bail.

A hearing is scheduled for both at 9 a.m. Wednesday in Central Court.

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Copyright (c) 2006, Wilkes-Barre, Pa., Times Leader

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: The Times Leader (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.)

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