According to court records, Raul Barrera Montero, 29, of Flemington, New Jersey, and Luis Javier Hernandez-Gonzalez, 25, also of Flemington, were charged by Mahanoy Township Police Chief Jody Long after an incident reported Monday, December 29, 2025.
Both men were charged with defiant trespass – posted property, a misdemeanor of the third degree, and criminal trespass/simple trespasser, a summary offense. Montero also faces an additional summary charge of trespass by motor vehicle.
Police were dispatched around 12:30 p.m. to the Gilberton Coal Company, located at 10 Gilberton Road, for a reported trespassing complaint.
Upon arrival, officers met with an employee who directed them to a secluded area of the property where a later-model Dodge Ram pickup truck bearing New Jersey registration was parked with two men nearby. The employee reported that the men had entered the posted “No Trespassing” property, cut down several white birch trees, and stacked them in the bed of the pickup truck.
The employee told police that prior to contacting authorities, he confronted the men and informed them they were trespassing. According to police, the men ignored the warning and continued their actions.
Through translation assistance from a Spanish-speaking Mahanoy Township police officer, investigators learned the men admitted to entering the property without permission and cutting down the trees. They told police they located the area using GPS and intended to sell the wood to obtain money for food. Both acknowledged they did not have permission from Gilberton Coal Company to be on the property or remove any trees.
Both men were taken into custody and transported to the Mahanoy Township Police Department for processing. Police reported that an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent later confirmed that both individuals were in the United States illegally.
Montero and Hernandez-Gonzalez were arraigned by on-call Magisterial District Judge Edward Tarantelli and committed to Schuylkill County Prison after failing to post $25,000 straight cash bail each.