Arrests.
A Franconia Township man is free on bail this week after being arrested and arraigned on felony drug possession and delivery charges by Montgomery County detectives and Douglass Township Police, who accuse him of taking part in his incarcerated brother’s alleged drug operation.
Chris Thivarath, 24, of the 500 block of Clearview Drive, faces three felonies – manufacture, delivery or possession with intent to manufacture or deliver, an accompanying conspiracy charge, and criminal use of a communication device – and misdemeanor charges of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to court documents.
Thivarath’s brother, Kevin, of the 100 block of Allentown Road, Souderton, remains in Montgomery County jail and has yet to face trial on charges of first-degree attempted murder and aggravated assault stemming from a shooting in Gilbertsville, Douglass Township in November 2023, according to court documents. A third Thivarath man, Davin, of Arrow Drive in Gilbertsville, is a co-defendant in the shooting case, per court records.
Detectives were led to Chris Thivarath via a text conversation found on Kevin Thivarath’s phone during a search warrant in January, according to the affidavit.
On Jan. 16, 2024, 12 days after Kevin Thivarath was arrested and an original search warrant was executed at his home, detectives obtained a search warrant for his Apple iPhone that was found under his mattress during the initial search, police said.
Police said the contents of the phone showed numerous texts implicating his involvement in drug trafficking, including a text conversation between him and Chris Thivarath, in which Kevin provided his brother with names and phone numbers of drug customers, as well as details of what each customer needs from him. According to police, Chris Thivarath was heavily involved in dealing narcotics to customers provided by his brother.
Then, detectives conducted a search warrant on Chris Thivarath’s Franconia Township home on Feb. 2, where, police allege, he told them narcotics were in his bedroom closet and laptop bag. During the search, police said, they recovered a laptop bag with a digital scale, two Ziploc brand bags with a white powder, multiple small empty baggies with an “Apple” label, and other baggies containing white residue.
The search also recovered, police allege, a Jansport backpack with multiple empty heat sealed bags, with prices written on the bag in Sharpie, two small baggies with a green leafy substance, and a black Puma satchel. Police said the Puma bag contained one 9mm round of ammo, one box of Ziploc brand bags, one black compressed-air handgun replica, a digital scale, a grinder with white residue, one long gun mounted light with switch, a long gun grip attachment, $441 in cash, a black laptop, and two baggies with white powder residue.
A preliminary hearing for Chris Thivarath is scheduled for July 30 at 11:30 a.m. before Magisterial District Judge Adam T. Katzman. He is represented by attorney Vincent M. Lorusso, of Philadelphia.
Kevin Thivarath has a pre-trial conference scheduled for June. He is represented by attorney John Francis McCaul, of Philadelphia.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
