Police probe death of man who collapsed after being pepper sprayed
Police in Washington County are investigating the death Saturday of a 69-year-old man who authorities said collapsed shortly after being hit with pepper spray during a dispute.
Harry Doleno of Canonsburg was sprayed around 12:40 p.m. on Seward Drive in Union Township, according to the county coroner.
The assailant was not identified.
Monongahela police are investigating. The chief was not available for comment, according to an officer who answered the phone Sunday at the department.
The coroner’s office said Doleno walked away after being sprayed but was found unresponsive a short time later.
He was pronounced dead at 2:45 p.m. on Seward Avenue near the location where he was sprayed, the coroner’s office said.
There was no sign of physical violence against Doleno, the coroner’s office said.
Washington County coroner Tim Warco did not return a call seeking comment.
Jonathan D. Silver is a TribLive news editor. A New York City native and graduate of Cornell University, he spent 26 years at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette as a reporter and editor before joining the Trib in 2022 as an enterprise reporter. Jon has also worked as a journalist in Venezuela, England, Wisconsin and California. He can be reached at jsilver@triblive.com.
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