Eric Doutt

By Jillian Pikora From Daily Voice

A former police chief is accused of selling cocaine while under surveillance and keeping a stolen AR-style rifle taken from an evidence room inside his home, Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole W. Ziccarelli announced on Friday, Nov. 14.

Eric Doutt, 56, of Arnold, was arrested in Armstrong County on Wednesday, Nov. 13, during a Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office drug investigation, according to authorities. Doutt has worked in law enforcement for more than 35 years, most of it with the Arnold Police Department, where he held nearly every rank.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Doutt spent 33 years and eight months with the department, beginning as a patrolman in 1990. Over the decades, he served as Patrol Sergeant, Juvenile Officer, DARE Instructor, K-9 Handler, Detective Sergeant, and twice as Chief of Police—first from 2008 to 2012 and again from 2016 to 2024. After retiring from Arnold PD, he worked as a Senior Police Officer II at UPMC Passavant beginning in January 2024.

Attorney General Dave Sunday said Doutt is charged in Armstrong County with felony possession with intent to deliver for selling cocaine on multiple occasions while under police surveillance. He is also charged in Westmoreland County with receiving stolen property and possessing a stolen firearm after investigators found an AR-style rifle in his Ridge Avenue home. The rifle had been taken from the Arnold Police Department’s evidence locker and was supposed to be destroyed. Doutt allegedly claimed he intended to return it to its original owner.

Following his arrest, Westmoreland County detectives and the county’s Drug Task Force executed a search warrant at his home on Thursday, Nov. 13. Detectives said they found cocaine inside the kitchen that field-tested positive, along with a foil bag of lidocaine hydrochloride believed to be a cutting agent. Investigators also located APD-engraved leg shackles, a leather police jacket belonging to another officer, and a missing department radio.

“This type of conduct by a trusted officer of the law violates the oath he took to keep our communities safe,” Attorney General Sunday said. “As a sworn officer, he was duty-bound to remove these dangers from the community, and instead, we allege he peddled these poisons.”

DA Ziccarelli called the allegations “unfortunate and disheartening,” adding that the arrest was made possible through cooperation among county and state law enforcement agencies.