Sara Lazzaro, who was both the organizer and a victim in an all-night poker tournament last month that culminated in an armed robbery at the Heidelberg Volunteer Fire Department on First Street, turned herself in Friday afternoon to District Justice Gary Zyra of Scott.

Ms. Lazzaro, 54, of Moon, was charged with 69 counts of illegal gambling in the borough and faces a preliminary hearing Thursday before District Judge Gary Zyra.

Shortly after midnight Friday (Nov. 13, police from Heidelberg and Moon served a search warrant on her home in the 100 block of Downing Road.

According to a news brief from Heidelberg Police Chief Vernon M. Barkley, Ms. Lazzaro was not home, but several family members were.

Confiscated from the home were numerous tablets and notes with names, amounts, locations and telephone numbers relating to Heidelberg and the specific nights that gambling took place there, They also found

21 poker tables, thousands of poker chips and a computer that will be examined by a forensic examiner under a separate search warrant.

Ms. Lazzaro's attorney, Charles P. Hoebler, called police later that day to say that his client would be turning herself in. She was released on her own recognizance.

The armed robbery took place Oct. 20. The thieves netted $5,900 and struck Ms. Lazzaro in the head.

Looking for more from the Post-Gazette? Join PG+, our members-only web site. You'll get exclusive sports content, opinion, financial information, discounts from retailers and restaurants, and more. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.