A Shenandoah man who did not appear in Schuylkill County Court for his trial in October is in the county prison after surrendering Monday.
Mark A. Tutko, 54, had been wanted since Oct. 18, when he was scheduled to help pick a jury for his trial on charges of criminal trespass, criminal mischief and loitering and prowling at nighttime.
President Judge William E. Baldwin issued a bench warrant for Tutko on Nov. 15.
"He contacted our office. He wanted to surrender," chief county Detective Dennis Clark said Monday after apprehending Tutko in Shenandoah.
Clark helped return Tutko to court, where Judge Jacqueline L. Russell held a hearing for him.
Assistant District Attorney Douglas J. Taglieri said Russell sent Tutko to prison without bail, although the defendant will be able to request bail in the future.
Russell did vacate the bench warrant that had been issued for Tutko, since he had been apprehended.
Shenandoah police alleged that on March 8, Tutko tried to break into the 311 W. Washington St. home of his sister and her husband, Mary Ellen and William Krusinsky.
The earliest Tutko could be tried on his current set of charges is in the February 2013 criminal court term.
On Feb. 7 a jury found Tutko not guilty of burglary, criminal trespass, stalking and loitering and prowling at nighttime after a one-day trial in Schuylkill County Court. Russell, who presided over the trial, found Tutko not guilty of harassment.
In that case, Shenandoah police charged Tutko with breaking into the home of Barbara Bisco at 145 Girard Ave. on Sept. 23, 2011. Mark A. Tutko
· Age: 54
· Residence: Shenandoah
· Charges: Criminal trespass, criminal mischief and loitering and prowling at nighttime