MCKEESPORT (KDKA) — A McKeesport police officer has resigned from the force after being arrested for allegedly stealing a house key and using it to enter a home.

Officer Vernon Andrews Jr., was charged Tuesday morning at the Allegheny County Courthouse.

This is the sixth law enforcement officer in Allegheny County that has been arrested in the last week. District Attorney Stephen Zappala said that integrity continues to be in the law enforcement system.

“A person who is charged with upholding the law, unless you have reason, unless you have cause, unless you’ve got the sanction of a judicial officer, you’re not permitted to enter somebody’s house. So, it runs contrary to so many things that are so important to our Constitution and our basic Bill of Rights,” Zappala said.

Andrews was in uniform and in a patrol car at the time of the incident back in September. After someone had left the home on Patterson Street in McKeesport, Andrews went up on the porch, saw a key and had it duplicated. The transaction was caught on surveillance video.

He later entered the home, but he is not accused of stealing anything. The motive is unknown, but he may have had a relationship with someone who lived there.

However, this is not the only problem Andrews is facing at the moment. Zappala said the FBI is investigating Andrews for suspected ties to drug dealers in the Mon Valley. No charges have been filed in that investigation.

Andrews has resigned from the police force.

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