The goal, according to prosecutors, was for the inmate to get a shorter prison sentence.
What seemed to be burglars mistakenly picking a Lehigh County judge's house as a target was actually a sinister plot by a state inmate, according to prosecutors.
Four men were already arrested and charged in the case, but on Tuesday prosecutors filed charges against three other men involved in the scheme, including the alleged mastermind.
Efrian "Baby" Miranda III is currently serving a 12- to 29-year sentence handed down by Judge Maria Dantos in 2012 in a drug case, but prosecutors say Miranda wanted to shorten his time behind bars.
Miranda allegedly told prosecutors there was a plot to to kill a Lehigh County judge. Investigators did not identify the victim by name in court paperwork, and First Deputy District Attorney Steve Luksa also declined to name the judge.
Miranda then orchestrated an elaborate scheme where he told unwitting co-defendants to go break into a specific house in order to get drugs and guns, authorities allege.
The goal, according to prosecutors, was to have the co-defendants' armed home invasion confirm Miranda's tip, make his information seem reliable and lead to a shorter prison sentence.
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Miranda, 33, was charged Tuesday night with criminal solicitation of burglary, criminal use of a communication facility and conspiracy to commit racketeering. Although he was already in the state prison in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, Miranda's bail was set at $250,000.
Prosecutors allege Miranda directly plotted the burglary with two men: fellow Huntingdon inmate Robert "B.O.B." Bullock and Bethlehem resident Stephen "Shyne Po" Pearson.
Bullock confirmed providing the information to Pearson, and that he received it from Miranda, prosecutors said.
Bullock and Pearson, of the 2300 block of East Boulevard, were each charged Tuesday with burglary, conspiracy to commit burglary, criminal use of a communication facility, and conspiracy to commit racketeering. Each was sent to Lehigh County Jail in lieu of $250,000.
Two men at the door
Police were called by the judge the night of July 21 to his home in Allentown for a report of two men at his door.
The judge told officers the men repeatedly rang the doorbell, and the judge went to the door and asked who was there, police said. The men said they need help because they were having car trouble, and wanted to come in the house to use the phone, according to police.
When the judge said he would call the police, the men left the house and drove off, police said.
Prosecutors said they later learned the men were Tyrice Harvey and Roy Williams Jr.
A week later, a little after midnight on July 28, the judge reported two people tried to break into the house through a rear door, but fled after activating motion lights.
A surveillance camera caught the men, who were wearing masks covering their faces. One of the men carried a revolver and had gloves on, while the other man did not have gloves and was carrying a roll of duct tape, police said.
The man with the tape opened a screen door and began placing tape on the glass of the interior door, before the pair spotted the camera and disabled it, police said. As they disabled the camera, security lights were triggered and the pair fled, but left the tape, police said.
Fingerprints found on the door matched Antoine Johnson and latent prints matched Williams, who was also at the house the night of July 21, police said.
The 19-year-old Williams, of Philadelphia, was arrested Aug. 2 by Philadelphia County probation and the 27-year-old Johnson, of Allentown, was arrested Aug. 5.
Each man was charged with burglary, criminal trespass and loitering. Williams, who is being held on $250,000 bail, had his preliminary hearing in his case on Tuesday and all the charges were sent to Lehigh County Court.
Johnson waived his preliminary hearing and his bail was dropped from $500,000 to $100,000, records show.
Harvey, 24, was arraigned Sept. 7 on two counts each of burglary and criminal trespass, and four counts each of conspiracy. He remains in Lehigh County Jail on $250,000 bail.
A trail of calls and phone data
Investigators say in a June 28th recorded prison phone call, Miranda is heard talking to Bullock and Pearson about sending a "kite," code for letter, about who Pearson should take with him on the "job."
Pearson allegedly told police that he received information from Miranda about a burglary, but that he did nothing more than drive by the house.
In a recorded prison phone call with Bullock, Pearson admits being at the home on June 18 but said the door was locked, according to prosecutors. On July 5th, Pearson tells Bullock he went to the house the day before, but there was a cookout in the backyard, prosecutors said.
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After Williams was apprehended, he reportedly admitted to the attempted burglary on the night of July 27 into the early morning of July 28, and told police he drove to the victim's house in a white Chevrolet Impala owned by Harvey, implicated in the July 21 visit to the judge's house.
Police stopped Harvey in the car on Aug. 2, and investigators searched "numerous" cellphones found inside. Police said forensic extraction on the phones showed the judge's address was sent and received in text messages, and was entered into one of the phone's navigation system.
The victim's address texted in the early morning of July 21 was from a phone number registered to a woman who has a child with Troy Butler Jr.
Butler is also an inmate at the Huntingdon state prison, and police said he told investigators Bullock provided him information about an old man with guns and drugs at his house, and a timeline of when the burglary needed to be done.
When investigators reviewed Butler's recorded prison phone calls, they discovered details of the crimes on July 21 and July 28 directly from the mouths of the defendants, according to court records.
Butler called his brother July 18 about a possible "move" for him and would give him the details the next day, prosecutors said.
In a July 19 call, Butler allegedly tells his brother the move is for "chickens, a toolbox and elbows," which investigators said is code for a kilogram of cocaine, guns, and pounds of marijuana.
Butler says the items are in the home of an old man, who may or may not be there, but that the mark has a "toaster in the holster," code for a gun, prosecutors said.
Butler gives his brother the victim's address, and says the "loot" will be split 50/50 with representatives of another inmate, investigators said. Butler's brother says he will do the job with "Rese," referring to Harvey, and "Shmurda," referring to Williams, prosecutors said.
On July 20, Butler calls Harvey and gives him the same information, including the address, but adds that the crime must be done by July 21, prosecutors said.
On July 22, Butler speaks to Harvey again, and Harvey describes the account given by the judge to police the night of July 21 -- that the pair went to the door, a man answered and they fled, prosecutors said.
Undeterred, prosecutors said, Butler called Harvey on July 25 and said the burglary could still be done, but it would have to be completed by July 28. Later calls reveal Williams and a man named "Neef" went to the house but fled when the motion lights were triggered, and that Harvey planned to go back with Williams the night of July 27th with tape to prevent the door's glass from shattering, prosecutors said.
In an interview with investigators on Aug. 18, Butler reportedly admitted contacting his brother and friends to plan a burglary, after being told by Bullock the home was occupied by an "old man who had guns and drugs."
Butler, 23, was arraigned the same day as the interview on two counts each of burglary and criminal trespass, and four counts each of conspiracy. He remains in Lehigh County Jail on $500,000 bail.
Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.