From staff reports
An Emlenton man is facing charges for making moonshine in a camper behind his College Street residence in Emlenton.
Emlenton police became aware of the moonshine while investigating a male juvenile runaway in January. Police found a jar of the homemade liquor in the boy’s room.
The liquor was found to belong to Nicholas Shay, 44, police said.
The runaway boy was taken into custody a couple of days later and placed in the Keystone Adolescent Center in Greenville.
Police said they received a statement from the boy’s sister telling them that the boy had taken eight jars of moonshine from Shay’s property and given them to his friends.
Over the next several months, police tried to contact and meet with Shay, who said he works out of town and is at his Emlenton home on the weekends.
The complaint says Shay told police by phone that he didn’t believe it was illegal to make moonshine for his personal use. He told police that some neighborhood kids had taken the moonshine from his camper but that he had never sold or given it to anyone.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Jan. 9 at Venango County Central Court.
