Arnold Parolee Who Led Police on High-Speed Chase with Child in Vehicle Sentenced to 13 Years in Prison for Trafficking Fentanyl and Heroin

PITTSBURGH, Pa. - A resident of Arnold, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 156 months of incarceration, to be followed by five years of supervised release, on his conviction for fentanyl and heroin trafficking, United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.

United States District Judge W. Scott Hardy imposed the sentence on Kevin Watson, 36, on February 4, 2026.

According to information presented to the Court, on April 26, 2019, Watson was stopped by the Pennsylvania State Police for traffic violations, with a young child present in the back seat of Watson's vehicle. When asked to get out of the vehicle, Watson sped away and led officers on a high-speed chase that reached speeds of 115 mph before Watson crashed the vehicle and fled on foot, leaving the child, who was not seriously injured, alone and unattended in the vehicle. Later, the Pennsylvania State Police obtained a search warrant for the vehicle, which revealed more than $100,000 of a mixture containing fentanyl and heroin in the trunk. Watson has an extensive criminal history that includes, among other convictions, three previous drug trafficking convictions, and was on parole at the time of this offense.

Assistant United States Attorneys Kelly M. Locher and Barbara K. Doolittle prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

United States Attorney Rivetti commended the Pennsylvania State Police and Drug Enforcement Administration for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Watson.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.