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Updated 56 minutes ago
An Allegheny County man pleaded guilty Monday to identity theft charges in connection with a crime spree in which he used personal account numbers of a North Huntingdon family to purchase cellphones.
Two weeks ago, Jason Millward, 24, of Penn Hills was taken into custody by deputy sheriffs in Adamsburg as he dangled from a second-floor window in his underwear.
Millward had been sought on a warrant for failing to appear in Allegheny County court for an unrelated incident in which he allegedly stabbed a Westmoreland County sheriff who was guarding him in a Pittsburgh hospital room.
In court on Monday, Millward pleaded guilty to charges that stemmed from six cases, five of them related to identity fraud in connection with a plot to purchase five cellphones using personal information of a couple and two of their children in late 2014 and early 2015.
Police said Millward and two juvenile accomplices stole personal information to purchase the phones. According to court records, one of the juveniles enlisted Millward, her boyfriend, to help her replace a broken cellphone after her parents refused to do so.
Police said Millward directed her to get her parents' credit card numbers, which were billed for the phones.
Millward pleaded guilty to charges of theft, identity fraud, forgery and conspiracy. He pleaded guilty in an unrelated case to resisting arrest when North Huntingdon police attempted to take him into custody.
Assistant District Attorney Barbara Jollie said the plea bargain approved Monday calls for Millward to serve up to 11 1⁄2 to 23 months in jail and two years of probation.
Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio said Millward will be sentenced later this year after he undergoes a mental health evaluation. The jail term will not include time he has already served and won't begin until he is formally sentenced, she said.
Charges related to the deputy sheriff's stabbing is pending in Allegheny County. In connection with that case, Millward also was charged last month by the sheriff's department with resisting arrest, flight to avoid apprehension and aggravated assault.
Rich Cholodofsky is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-830-6293 or rcholodofsky@tribweb.com.
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