{"id":258688,"date":"2026-08-04T01:32:07","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T01:32:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/258688\/"},"modified":"2026-08-04T01:32:07","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T01:32:07","slug":"man-charged-as-co-conspirator-in-allegheny-county-property-deed-scheme-speaks-with-channel-11","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/258688\/","title":{"rendered":"Man charged as co-conspirator in Allegheny County property deed scheme speaks with Channel 11"},"content":{"rendered":"

PITTSBURGH \u2014 William Petruskie will have his preliminary hearing at Pittsburgh Municipal Court in September for charges related to a property deed scheme.<\/a> Police say Petruskie was a co-conspirator even though he told officers and me that he\u2019s to blame.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hurt a lot of people by doing things that I did and you know I am sorry that I did it, but I don\u2019t want to see somebody get in trouble that didn\u2019t have anything to do with it,\u201d William Petruskie said.<\/p>\n

William Petruskie says he\u2019s trying to right his wrongs. The Allegheny County District Attorney\u2019s office accused both him and William Schneider in a forged property deed scheme.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t realize I was going to get caught like that,\u201d Petruskie said. <\/p>\n

Petruskie is charged with 10 counts of theft and criminal conspiracy. William Schneider faces over 130 charges<\/a> for forgery, theft and criminal conspiracy. <\/p>\n

Investigators say Schneider submitted fraudulent deed transfers for 43 separate properties in Allegheny County using counterfeit notary stamps bought on Amazon. <\/p>\n

PREVIOUS COVERAGE >>>11 Investigates: Dozens of deeds in Allegheny County recorded into the names of criminals<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI could see how easy it is to take a deed. Very easy, and I think the system should be changed big time. All you gotta do is copy, paste, boom it\u2019s done. It\u2019s just one piece of paper,\u201d Petruskie said.<\/p>\n

Petruskie is charged with creating an LLC that\u2019s listed on 10 of the 43 forged property deeds.<\/p>\n

PREVIOUS COVERAGE >>> 11 Investigates: County says it cannot track down those believed to be tied to fraudulent deeds<\/a><\/p>\n

But he voluntarily did an interview with Channel 11, claiming he bears most of the responsibility.<\/p>\n

\u201cI bought a stamper off Amazon on his account and everything without his knowledge,\u201d Petruskie said.<\/p>\n

According to the criminal complaint, Petruskie initially tried to take the blame – saying it was his idea. The paperwork says when police showed Petruskie the information from their investigation, \u201che admitted that Schneider was forging deeds for a month before he asked Schneider how he could start doing it with him.\u201d <\/p>\n

Petruskie says he was on drugs when he committed the crimes. <\/p>\n

Channel 11 reached out to William Schneider today, but he said he had no comment. <\/p>\n

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