Search of Latrobe murder scene turns up $12,000 cash stowed in gym bag

A search of the Latrobe home and property where 20-year-old Daniel McNerny was gunned down nearly three years ago turned up a canvas gym bag containing $12,000 in cash, an investigator testified Thursday.

Prosecutors in the murder trial of Austin Krinock contend he and two others conspired to steal the money from a Pittsburgh-area drug dealer, a plot that resulted in McNerny’s murder.

Krinock, 20, of Johnstown, is charged as an accomplice with second and third-degree murder, robbery and conspiracy in connection with the January 2016 shooting.

Westmoreland County Detective Thomas Klawinski testified in the third day of the trial before Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio that investigators found the money in a bag on the sidewalk near the home.

Christopher Showers, 22, of Wexford, the target of the robbery plot, previously testified he visited the St. Clair Street house to collect money and sell drugs when a masked man approached him outside at gunpoint, demanding the cash.

McNerny, who was not part of the robbery plot nor the intended target, attempted to intervene and was shot twice during a struggle for the gun.

Forensic pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht testified one shot hit McNerny in the middle of his abdomen and did not cause much damage. A second round proved fatal as it lodged in McNerny’s chest as he turned away from the shooter.

“It led to a significant amount of bleeding. He bled out,” Wecht said.

The prosecution has said Krinock, along with Colin Gearhart, 20, and Zachary McGrath, 23, both of Latrobe, conceived the robbery plot as retaliation. Witnesses said Krinock was upset with a verbal slight Showers made months earlier in a dispute about a girl.

Police contend McGrath was the man who shot McNerny. Krinock and Gearhart, according to the prosecution, attempted to conceal the stolen cash and hide guns they purchased as part of the plot.

Klawinski testified two guns were found in a plastic case in a shed behind the house.

The suspected murder weapon was found in a snow-covered area, where witnesses said they disposed of it at McGrath’s request. Separate trials for McGrath and Gearhart will be scheduled next year.

Krinock’s trial will continue on Friday.

Rich Cholodofsky is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Rich at 724-830-6293 or rcholodofsky@tribweb.com.