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Area news briefs

Woman pleads guilty to stealing more than $60K

WARREN – A Boardman woman pleaded guilty Wednesday to stealing more than $60,000 from the Ace Cash Express office where she worked.

Sarah Dietz, 30, of Centervale Avenue, was ordered to undergo a presentence investigation before she is sentenced on the fourth-degree felony.

Prosecutors said she created fake accounts at the South Street S.E. business between October 2011 and April 2012 to get the money.

Police reports state that the business’ regional manager, Mark R. McCollum, reported May 8 that inconsistencies were found while conducting an internal audit.

Champion school board to meet on vacancy

CHAMPION – The Champion Board of Education will hold a special meeting at 7 p.m. today at the board office to discuss the procedure for filling a vacancy on the board, and other employment issues.

Longtime board member Larry Durch died last week. Durch’s term on the board was to end on Dec. 31.

The person selected by the board would serve the remainder of this year. If the appointee chooses to serve another term, he or she would need to run in the November general election.

Sen. Sherrod Brown to host job fair Monday

ROOTSTOWN – U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown will host a job fair from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday in the conference center at the Northeast Ohio Medical University, 4209 state Route 44.

Co-hosting the event will be local chambers of commerce, regional economic development organizations and OneStop job centers from northeast Ohio. Colleges and career centers will be available to provide jobseekers information and advice on available training programs.

Employers hiring in 2013 should contact Brown’s office today at brown_events@brown.senate.gov for more information or to reserve a booth.

Jobseekers planning to attend are encouraged to RSVP by calling 888-896-6446, option 1, or by emailing brown_RSVP@brown.senate.gov.

Area news briefs

Trafficking charge filed after traffic stop made

WARREN – City police charged a Niles man with drug trafficking after a Friday afternoon traffic stop on Fulton Street S.E.

Brandon D. Norman, 30, 327 E. Park Ave., was released from the Trumbull County Jail on $3,500 bond on Friday, jail staff said.

Police said they found marijuana, plastic bags and a scale in the vehicle Norman was driving about 3:15 p.m.

Warren man facing weapons charges

NILES – A Warren man is facing various weapons charges after being accused of firing gunshots early Saturday morning near the High Point Restaurant and Tavern on Youngstown Road.

Niles police charged Anthony L. Rivera, 32, of Eastland Avenue S.E., with improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle and using weapons while intoxicated.

Police arrested Rivera after receiving a report that someone fired gunshots near the establishment at 754 Youngstown Road about 1:30 a.m. Warren police and the Ohio State Highway Patrol assisted with the arrest.

Rivera was released from the Trumbull County Jail later Saturday after posting $3,500 bond, jail staff confirmed.

Juveniles accused of pointing guns

WARREN – Police arrested two juveniles and were looking for a third on Sunday after receiving reports that the teenagers were pointing guns at several people in the area of Ward Street and Parkman Road.

Police located two of the male juveniles, ages 15 and 16, in the area of Hillsdale Drive and arrested them each on an aggravated menacing charge, according to a Warren police report.

A Hunter Street man told police that three juvenile males with guns threatened him about 7:15 p.m. The police report lists two other alleged victims.

Warren woman’s window shot out

WARREN – A Jackson Street S.W. woman told police she woke up Monday morning to find glass shards on her living room floor.

Gloria McKinney, 69, reported to police that about 1 a.m. gunshots were fired in the area of her residence.

McKinney told police she later discovered her front window was shot out by a single round, the report states. Police said there was a single, mangled lead bullet on the inside windowsill.

Youngstown awarded grant for blight work

COLUMBUS – The City of Youngstown was awarded a $94,803 grant for the Mahoning Valley Collaborative Code Enforcement System.

The State Development Services Agency announced the grant Tuesday as part of nearly $3 million in grants and loans awarded to 26 communities through the Local Government Innovation Fund.

The Mahoning County project is a partnership of the city, the Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corp., and the Center for Urban and Regional Studies at Youngstown State University in a concentrated attack on blighted properties throughout the city, according to the city’s application.

Area news briefs

Drugs found during traffic stop on I-80

AUSTINTOWN – Three 21-year-old Youngstown men were booked in Mahoning County Jail early Monday after Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers stopped a car on Interstate 80 and seized several bags of drugs.

The 2006 Chevrolet Monte Carlo was traveling more than 100 mph shortly before 3:30 a.m., a patrol report states. After the car was stopped and the driver removed from the vehicle, troopers called in a K-9 unit to check the car. The dog indicated that drugs were present, and troopers then found bags of crack cocaine, powder cocaine, heroin, pills and marijuana, troopers said.

The driver, Alden Young, and passengers Shane Overton and Michael R. Stanley, were all charged with felony drug possession. Young also was charged with aggravated trafficking in drugs.

All three of the men are on probation for either drug or assault charges.

Two Warren women injured in crash

BAZETTA – Two women were sent to the hospital with serious injuries after a two-vehicle accident Monday evening.

Alyssa Mymo, 22, of Warren, ran a southbound stop sign on North Park Avenue and was hit by a car traveling east on state Route 305 around 5:20 p.m. Monday, the Ohio State Highway Patrol reported.

Mymo and the driver of the other car, Barbara Wooldridge, 76, also of Warren, were taken to hospitals for treatment, troopers said.

Mymo was cited for failure to stop at a stop sign.

Both vehicles, Mymo’s 2001 Pontiac Grand Am and Wooldridge’s 2008 Saturn Aura, were heavily damaged. Police and emergency crews from Bazetta and Champion townships, along with the Trumbull County Sheriff’s Office, assisted. The intersection was closed for about an hour and a half.

Military flyovers scratched for services

POLAND – Military flyovers were missing from Memorial Day ceremonies on Monday, one of the results of sequestration.

Traditionally, air crews from the Youngstown Air Reserve Station in Vienna fly their C-130s over various parades and ceremonies in the area. This year, those missions were scratched because of budget problems in Congress.

Former lawmaker and Air Force pilot John Boccieri, who spoke at Monday morning’s service in Poland, said the flyovers are popular with his fellow reservists.

“I know quite a few local air crew members who love to participate in Memorial Day events, maybe not necessarily to get up there and speak and give a speech like I was able to, but they like to participate in that way, fly over different services across the community,” Boccieri told WYTV 33 News. He is commander of the 773rd Airlift Squadron at the Youngstown Air Reserve Station.

Boccieri said he and others are hoping the budget issues can be resolved in Washington so the flyovers and other events can be restored next year.

Area news briefs

Niles grocer Gilbert Macali died Saturday

NILES – Longtime grocer Gilbert A. Macali Sr., 93, passed away Saturday at his residence.

He and his brother Palmer ”Barney” Macali opened their first Niles grocery store in 1948. In a 1988 Tribune Chronicle article, the brothers said they became interested in the grocery business after tagging along with a Niles grocery deliveryman.

The pair purchased their first store on Robbins Avenue and continued to expand over the years. They credited their success to quality and personalized service.

In 1979, they purchased an old A&P grocery store at 48 Vienna Ave. and took on the Valu King franchise. Today, this location is run under the name Macali’s Niles Giant Eagle.

Macali served 20 years as president of the Niles Civil Service Commission and was a member of the Niles Historical Society, Friends of the Library and trustees circle of the Butler Institute of American Art.

Report: Driver hits pole after falling asleep

HUBBARD – A car struck a telephone pole on South Main Street about 9 a.m. Sunday morning.

The driver, who told police he had just gotten off of the late shift at work, fell asleep at the wheel, according to Tribune Chronicle news partner WYTV.

The driver was transported with minor injuries by a private ambulance to the hospital.

Woman thrown from horse at Mosquito park

BAZETTA – A Bazetta woman was taken to the hospital by helicopter after being thrown from a horse Saturday afternoon.

The 70-year-old woman was riding a horse about 1:30 p.m. on the trails at Mosquito Lake State Park when she fell from the animal, Tribune Chronicle newspartner WYTV 33 News reported.

The Bazetta Fire Department, along with help from Mecca, pulled the woman from the woods of the trail off Hoagland Blackstub Road. She was flown to St. Elizabeth Health Center in Youngstown in stable condition. Her name was not released.

“It was unknown if she had a medical emergency prior to the fall. It was at least an hour, hour and a half extrication time, that’s why the helicopter was called in, for trauma purposes and neurological injuries,” Dave Walter, acting supervisor of the Bazetta Township Fire Department, told 33 News.

The horse was corralled and returned to the farm.

Police: Speeder leads cops on 10-minute chase

VIENNA – Police spent about 10 minutes chasing down Jerry Houston, 47, of Vienna, after he refused to pull over for a speeding violation at the intersection of Crews Hood Road and Belmont Avenue on Friday evening.

The chase started at 6:38 p.m. and concluded at 6:49 p.m. Houston already had a warrant out for driving without a license. He is charged with resisting arrest and fleeing police.

Two injured in two-car crash in Liberty

LIBERTY – Two people were transported to St. Elizabeth Health Center with minor injuries after a two-car collision at the intersection of East Liberty Street and Mosier Road around 12:20 p.m. Sunday.

A police report was not available. The Trumbull County 911 emergency dispatch center did not provide names or conditions of the injured.

Area news briefs

Gunman takes cash in home invasion

WARREN – City police are investigating a Tuesday morning home invasion at a residence on Jackson Street S.W.

According to reports, Chester Galbreath told police a man he doesn’t know came into his residence about 7:44 a.m., showed a handgun, and took cash from him and his wife.

Tour bus overturns on I-80 in work zone

LIBERTY – A tour bus overturned Tuesday night on Interstate 80 near the Logan Way overpass, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

William Nasos, 75, of New Jersey, was driving a 2008 Motor Coach Industries tour bus west on I-80 about 11:23 p.m. when he drove off the right side of the road, striking a guardrail face and several cement barriers, according to the patrol. The vehicle continued off the right side of the roadway, overturned and landed on the passenger side.

Nasos was the only occupant in the vehicle and was not injured, the patrol reported.

The crash occurred within a non-occupied work zone. I-80 was closed for about 10 minutes for recovery vehicles to upright the bus.

Liberty police and fire departments assisted as well as members of the Youngstown Air Reserve Station Fire Department.

Woman claims son’s hand burned

WARREN – An Oak Street S.W. woman told police a male she knows burned her juvenile son’s hand Tuesday morning.

Tina Robinson, 1484 Oak St. S.W., reported the alleged assault about 9:30 a.m. It was not clear how severely the boy was hurt.

Catholic Charities seeks tornado donations

YOUNGSTOWN – The Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Youngstown is accepting donations to help those hurt by recent severe storms and tornadoes.

Catholic Charities USA, which has been commissioned by the U.S. Catholic Bishops to represent the Catholic community in times of domestic disaster, responds with emergency and long-term assistance as needed.

Checks may be made payable for domestic disasters to Catholic Charities, Diocese of Youngstown, and for international disasters Catholic Relief Services, Diocese of Youngstown. Note the donation is for the “2013 Spring Storms Disaster Fund.” Mail to Office of Social Action, 144 W. Wood St., Youngstown OH 44503.

For more information, call 330-744-8451, Ext. 320.

Guardrails to be replaced in Trumbull

WARREN – The Trumbull County Engineer’s Office, with money given by the County Engineers Association of Ohio, will replace 11,000 feet of guardrail in 21 locations around the county this summer.

Wayne Hickman, an engineering technician with the office, said 8,500 feet of outdated guardrail will be replaced, and 2,500 of new guardrail will be installed. The guardrail being put in has added safety features for motorists.

The work is expected to be done by the end of summer.

Lake Erie Construction Company of Norwalk won the contract for the work, bidding $281,320. Bids from two other companies ranged from $285,000 to $336,000. The project is being fully funded by a grant from the association.

County 911 center set to add Weathersfield

WARREN – Trumbull County’s 911 Center will begin dispatching police and fire for Weathersfield on July 1, under an agreement county commissioners approved Wednesday.

The agreement calls for the township to pay $1,755 a month, and the one-year contract renews automatically, said Ernest Cook III, 911 director. Weathersfield’s switch to the 911 center moves the service away from Niles, which had been dispatching the township’s safety forces.

Area news briefs

Warren man pleads

not guilty to rape

WARREN – A Warren man is being held on $150,000 bond after pleading not guilty Monday to charges stemming from a reported sexual attack on a younger, mentally disabled man last August.

James L. Austin, 42, of Front Street S.W., faces a five-count secret indictment for two counts of rape, two counts of gross sexual imposition and kidnapping.

He is scheduled for a pre-trial hearing Wednesday before Judge W. Wyatt McKay.

According to reports, the 19-year-old man was fixing up an abandoned home on Front Street, when Austin followed him into the house and sexually molested and attacked him.

Man pleads guilty

to assault, kidnapping

WARREN – A city man was sentenced to six years behind bars Monday after pleading guilty to felonious assault and kidnapping in connection with an attack on an ex-girlfriend.

Michael A. Fernandez, 50, of Fourth Street S.W., also will serve time on two unrelated drug and weapons charges.

Fernandez was indicted on charges of beating the woman inside a Niles home where she was visiting a friend. He then took the victim to his home in Warren where she was beaten again on Nov. 26.

The woman was hospitalized following the attack.

Chevy truck slams

into Bazetta home

BAZETTA – The driver of a vehicle was injured late Monday after a truck hit a residence on state Route 305.

Police responded about 9:10 p.m. and found a Chevrolet pickup truck had smashed into a home at 769 state Route 305.

The vehicle struck the wheelchair ramp at the home, according to a 911 supervisor.

Ohio State Highway Patrol in Warren said the cause of the crash and identity of the driver were unknown late Monday.

The driver was taken to Trumbull Memorial Hospital in Warren with what police called a non-serious injury. The amount of damage caused to the home was also unclear.

State troopers and Bazetta police responded to the accident. Charges are pending an investigation.

Police were still at the scene at press time.

Police: Man treated

for gunshot wound

WARREN – City police are investigating a shooting that wounded a Tod Avenue man on Sunday.

According to a Warren police report, Audie L. Broadus, 24, suffered an apparent minor injury. Police said when they responded to the area near 937 Front St. S.W. about 12:30 a.m. in reference to a possible gunshot victim, they found that Broadus had already been taken to Trumbull Memorial Hospital by a family member.

Broadus told police he did not know who shot him.

Warren woman reports assault with knife

WARREN – A Plaza Avenue woman told police a man broke into her apartment Saturday night and assaulted her with a knife.

According to a police report, the man cut the woman several times with a knife about 11 p.m.

The woman told police she did not know the man.

Hartford proceeds

with police levy

HARTFORD – Township trustees at a special meeting on Monday took the first step to placing a 2-mill, five-year police operating levy on the November ballot.

Trustee Chairwoman Rebecca Whitman said the levy would generate $68,000 annually for staff salaries and equipment.

In another matter, trustees reviewed with their insurance company the $9,000 in damages caused by an April windstorm that knocked a tree onto the roof of the fire station. It and also bent the flag pole at the administration building.

Whitman said the roof was repaired, but the tree also caused other damage.

Area news briefs

Liberty Relay for

Life raises $102,000

LIBERTY – The Liberty Relay for Life raised $102,000 for the American Cancer Society.

Event co-coordinator Debbie Mullarkey said the 32 teams who participated this weekend have until August to contribute additional funds to the total, which she said is about what the event has raised in past years.

This was the 12th year for the Liberty event. Teams from Girard, Hubbard, McDonald and Liberty participated.

The remaining Trumbull County relays are June 7 and 8 in Cortland and June 14 and 15 in Newton Falls.

West Farmington

to flush hydrants

WEST FARMINGTON – West Farmington village will be flushing fire hydrants beginning at 10 p.m. Wednesday.

Residents may notice a discoloration in the water.

Phone service to be

out at Hubbard building

HUBBARD – The Hubbard city Administration Building and Safety center will not have telephone service between 10 a.m. and noon on Friday.

Officials said the 911 service and the local 330-534-1133 number will be active and answered through the 911 Center.

Area news briefs

Former sheriff’s deputy dies days after shootings

YOUNGSTOWN – A one-time Mahoning County sheriff’s deputy suspected of shooting his wife and himself late Sunday is dead.

According to the Lawrence County, Pa., coroner, Joseph Lupo, 50, died early Thursday at St. Elizabeth Health Center in Youngstown.

Earlier this week, troopers from the New Castle, Pa., barracks said Lupo had been reported dead Monday of a gunshot wound to the head in the 11:15 p.m. Sunday gunfire in Mahoning Township, about 50 miles northwest of Pittsburgh.

On Tuesday, however, police said that he was listed in critical condition at St. Elizabeth’s.

His wife, Caroline Lupo, 50, is also hospitalized at the same facility after surgery for gunshot wounds to the leg and abdomen.

Sunny Spa re-opens after suspension served

WARREN – An East Market Street massage parlor ordered closed by the health department last month re-opened Thursday after an agreement was reached by the two sides.

City officials and an attorney for the spa met before a hearing Thursday in front of the city Board of Appeals and agreed on a 45-day suspension that ended the same day.

The spa was ordered closed April 1 for 90 days after Warren Deputy Health Commissioner Robert Pinti said he found a bikini-clad spa employee helping a naked customer shower during a surprise health inspection March 21.

Warren man sentenced over shooting in bar

WARREN – A 38-year-old Warren man was sentenced to five years in prison Thursday after pleading guilty to shooting a man inside a local bar.

Simpatico Dorsey of Jefferson Street S.W. pleaded guilty to felonious assault with a firearm specification, having weapons under disability and having a gun inside a bar. Trumbull County Common Pleas Judge Ronald Rice sentenced Dorsey.

Warren police arrested Dorsey in connection with the shooting of Andrew Thornton, 49, of Risher Road S.W. Prosecutors said Thornton was shot in the left knee on Dec. 2 inside the Powerhouse Bar after the two men argued.

Woman forced into car, beaten and robbed

WARREN – A Summit Street woman told police she was forced into a vehicle, beaten and robbed early Thursday morning while walking on Dietz Road N.E.

Amanda Lee Blevins, 34, told police she was approached by unknown people while walking to her boyfriend’s house just after 3 a.m.

She said she was grabbed and beaten, then forced into a vehicle, but dropped off a short time later, according to a Warren police report. She reported that her purse and its contents, including a bank card and personal checks, were taken from her.

Warren man assaulted; gun, ammunition stolen

WARREN – City police are investigating a report of an aggravated burglary Wednesday during which a man was assaulted and a semiautomatic handgun was stolen from a Main Avenue house.

Raphael Napolitan, 20, went to St. Joseph Health Center for medical treatment after the break-in, according to a Warren police report. The report indicated he suffered apparent minor injury.

The other resident, Roderick Croff, 28, reported that a Ruger 9 mm semiautomatic handgun and two, 100-round boxes of Blazer 9 mm ammunition were taken. Croff told police that he didn’t know the people who broke into his house.

Howland schedules mosquito spraying

HOWLAND – The township has approved Alexander Pest Control for mosquito control spraying each month through September. The first spraying is 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. Monday and Tuesday.

In case of rain, the spraying will take place the following evening.

Residents are encouraged to close their windows, keep pets inside and not to leave any food outdoors during the spraying.

Tribune Chronicle

Area news briefs

Man picked up in

kidnapping and rape

WARREN – City police on Tuesday arrested a man at the Hamilton County Jail who is accused of kidnapping, raping and robbing a city woman in April.

Warren detectives picked up Kevin Jones, 23, 207 Williamsburg Road, Cincinnati, on outstanding rape, kidnapping and aggravated robbery warrants from the city police department.

He was transported to the Trumbull County Jail, where he was being held in lieu of $350,000 bond after his arraignment Wednesday in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court.

Police provided few details about the allegations. However, officers were called to Trumbull Memorial Hospital April 13 after an emergency room nurse reported that a 21-year-old woman had been raped, according to a Warren police report. The police report indicated the woman was injured, but did not specify to what extent or how seriously.

Police: Man reported

dead in shooting lives

HILLSVILLE, Pa. – State police say a western Pennsylvania man who earlier was reported to have been killed in a Lawrence County shooting stemming from a domestic dispute is alive but in critical condition.

Troopers from the New Castle barracks said 50-year-old Joseph Lupo had been reported dead Monday of a gunshot wound to the head in the 11:15 p.m. Sunday gunfire in Mahoning Township.

But police said Tuesday that he was listed in critical condition at St. Elizabeth Health Center in Youngstown.

Caroline Lupo, 50, is also hospitalized at the same facility after surgery for gunshot wounds to the leg and abdomen.

Police have not said whether the two are married or who is believed to have fired the shots.

Lupo is a former Mahoning County Sheriff’s deputy.

Design work begins

on Elm Road fixes

WARREN – Design work is starting on a project to improve the intersection of Elm and North River roads.

Gary Shaffer, engineer with the Trumbull County Engineer’s Office, said the project includes improvements to the curbs, drainage, adding new signals, skid-resistant pavement and realigning the intersection. Work on the project should begin by June 2014.

On Wednesday, county commissioners approved $43,610 to be done in design work by the Floyd Browne Group in Akron. Shaffer said the county has budgeted about $108,000 for engineering on the project, but he expects the cost to much less.

Bazetta Fire Dept.

receives federal grant

BAZETTA – The fire department in Bazetta has been awarded $8,172 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The Assistance to Firefighters grant can be used for training, wellness and fitness programs, equipment, facility improvements and other supplies.

The award was announced in a press release Wednesday by U.S. Rep. Timothy J. Ryan, D-Niles.

Cash, Kindle stolen

in video store break-in

YOUNGSTOWN – Police were contacted by a customer early Tuesday morning about a possible break-in at a local video rental store.

The front door of the Family Video on Midlothian Boulevard had the glass broken out, and a rock sat just inside the establishment.

A customer who was returning a video about 5:30 a.m. noticed the damage to the door and called police. Officers contacted the manager after securing the scene, a police report states.

Employee Samantha Guffy, 25, confirmed drawers were gone through in the office area. She said approximately $350 and a Kindle electronic device were missing, the report states.

She told police the store was secured for the night about 12:30 a.m.

The Youngstown police crime lab is processing fingerprints.

Area news briefs

Akron man stabbed trying to give change

WARREN – An Akron man told police he was stabbed while trying to change out a $20 bill for another man early Tuesday morning at Jefferson Street and Nevada Avenue S.W.

Devonte L. Wells, 20, 332 Noble Ave., said he was walking about 3:30 a.m. when a man in his 20s, wearing all black clothing, asked for change for a $20, according to a Warren police report. Wells told police that not thinking anything of it, he reached into his left front pants pocket for the $154 he had to give the man change.

He said the man grabbed his arm while his hand still was in his pocket, and a struggle began. Wells told police the man ran away without his money, but he felt blood rolling down his arm, so he knew he had been cut.

Wells was treated at Trumbull Memorial Hospital for a 7-inch laceration to his left shoulder, the police report states.

Howland foundation to award scholarships

HOWLAND – The Howland Community Scholarships Foundation Inc. will award 48 scholarships Thursday totaling more than $35,000 to Howland High School graduates.

The scholarships will be awarded at 9:30 a.m. Thursday at Leo’s Ristorante, 7042 E. Market St.

The Howland Community Scholarships Foundation was founded in 2006, according to a release from the foundation. It has collected more than $360,000 in donations. Including this year’s recipients, the foundation has awarded 258 scholarships totaling more than $160,000.

Student applications are evaluated based upon academics and leadership as well as the completion of a 300-word essay.

For more information about the scholarship program, call 330-856-7222.

Boil alert is issued for Tamarack Drive

HUBBARD TOWNSHIP – Due to a service break, Trumbull County water customers on Tamarack Drive in Hubbard Township are being advised to boil their water used for consumption.

The alert is in effect until further notice.

Portman rep to speak to Young Republicans

BOARDMAN – George Brown, the northeast regional representative for Republican U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, will speak at the Mahoning County Teenage Republican May 22 meeting.

Also at the meeting, the group will discuss changes to their bylaws and plans for the summer.

The meeting is 6:30 p.m. at the Mahoning County Republican Party office, 621 Boardman Canfield Road.

Saturation blitz nets arrests and citations

CANFIELD – The Mahoning County OVI Task Force reported that the Coordinated Saturation Patrol Blitz last week in Youngstown netted three arrests and six citations.

Ten task force officers conducted patrol operations from 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. Friday. Officers assigned to the detail conducted 52 traffic stops that resulted in three operating a vehicle while intoxicated arrests, one adult restraint citation, one child restraint citation and three citations for driving under suspensions.

Strategic Planning Committee to meet

WARREN – Residents and city workers will provide updates on 10 projects designed to improve the quality of life in the city during a Strategic Planning Committee meeting scheduled for 4 p.m. today in the council chambers.

Topics include the expansion of a Warren Farmers Market, improvements to the Hughes on North Park and the Packard Park apartments, increasing the number of people living in the downtown area, marketing the downtown, the creation of an educational and medical district on Market Street, restoration of the Robins Theater Building, an update on the bike trail and updates on Mahoningside property and River Condominium project.

City Councilman John Brown Jr., D-3rd Ward, said, “If we have two to three of the projects well on their way towards completion, I will be very happy.”

Area news briefs

Car fires reported in Warren neighborhood

WARREN – The Warren Fire Department is investigating two intentionally set car fires that occurred three minutes apart early Friday.

Fire Chief Ken Nussle said the first call came in at 4:05 a.m. Friday at 1117 Rogers Ave. S.E., where a late model Volkswagen Jetta was a total loss after someone set a fire in the interior of the vehicle.

Three minutes later, a second fire was reported at 1046 Kenmore Ave. S.E. involving a late-model Chevrolet Cobalt. That car also a total loss, and the fire was started in the interior of the vehicle. A 2007 GMC Envoy parked in the driveway also sustained heat damage.

”Both were intentionally set,” Nussle said. ”Out gut feeling is it’s the work of the same person or persons, obviously.”

Investigators are waiting for lab analysis to determine whether an accelerant was used to start the fires.

”We’re not sure if there is any connection between the two parties, if they were targeting (them) or if this is just random,” Nussle said.

Jamestown, N.Y., couple facing drug charges

WARREN – Two Jamestown, N.Y., residents facing drug abuse charges after being arrested Wednesday on the Ohio Turnpike were each released from the Trumbull County Jail on Friday on $15,000 bond.

Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers arrested Andrew M. Ernewein, 29, and Rachel K. Ernewein, 30, around 8 a.m. after stopping their minivan on the Ohio Turnpike in Trumbull County. Troopers reported finding 2.5 pounds of marijuana and marijuana-laced candy in the van.

Bond was set at $15,000 for each of them after they were arraigned in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court on Thursday.

Boil alert is lifted in Hubbard Township

HUBBARD TOWNSHIP – A boil alert advisory issued earlier this week for White Oak Drive in Hubbard Township has been lifted.

The Trumbull County Sanitary Engineer’s Office completed two tests that showed that the water meets all Environmental Protection Agency standards and is safe for consumption.

Area news briefs

Bomb squad takes grenade from house

BAZETTA – What appeared to be a World War II-era grenade brought the Youngstown Bomb Squad to Bazetta on Monday evening.

Mildred Gouveria and her son, Jorge Miranda, found the grenade on the top shelf in the back of the closet at the 3278 McCleary Jacoby Road. Miranda told police that his mother told him to take it outside.

After researching the grenade online, Miranda said that he believed it was a World War II-type 97 Japanese device.

About 8 p.m., a Bazetta officer on patrol was called to the house for a report of a possible live grenade. The officer told dispatch to have the bomb squad sent to the address.

The grenade was found in the yard behind some rocks, and the bomb squad arrived to take possession of it.

Report: Intruder with knife attempts robbery

WARREN – A city woman told police a man threatened her at knifepoint during a robbery at a Deerfield Avenue residence on Tuesday.

Tyresha S. Little, 30, no street address available, told police she went to a male friend’s house at 1570 Deerfield Ave. S.W. about 12:35 p.m. but discovered that he was not there. As she was about to leave, a man entered and asked her what she had in her purse, according to a police report. The police report states he referred to some pills.

Little reported that she argued with the man, who then pulled a knife, put it to her throat and threatened her. Little got away and called the police.

Police said they checked the Deerfield Avenue house but the man had already left the residence.

Warren man charged with burglary

WARREN – Police charged a city man with burglarizing a Comstock Street residence on Tuesday after finding him hiding in a Dumpster.

Keith Holley, 22, 273 Idylwild St. N.E., remained at the Trumbull County Jail on Wednesday in lieu of $10,000 bond.

Charmain E. Brown, 42, told police she was at work about 11 p.m. when she was informed by her security company that her alarm had gone off and that glass had been broken.

Brown left work and went to her residence to wait for police, according to reports. She told police that she saw a man leaving the back of her house. The report states the man fled on foot through the woods toward the Warren Heights area.

Police later found Holley hiding in a Dumpster near Warren Heights, with a cell phone and several other items nearby that Brown had reported missing.

Man hurt trying to break up fight

WARREN – A Hamilton Street man told police he was hit with a crowbar on Tuesday while trying to break up a fight between two girls in front of his residence.

Michael E. Brogdon, 25, 2307 Hamilton St. S.W., said that a female he doesn’t know was trying to hit people with a crowbar, according to a police report. Brogdon stepped in to try to stop the fight, and the woman hit him with the crowbar in the right hand and arm, the report states.

Brogdon told police the females then fled the area. The police report indicates Brogdon was injured. About two hours later he called an ambulance to take him to a local hospital.

Police reported that Brogdon’s hand and arm were swollen.

Warren man pleads to sex with minor

WARREN – A 37-year-old local man pleaded guilty Wednesday to having sex with a 15-year-old girl in 2011.

Besides the two counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, Keith Foley of Maryland Street also pleaded guilty to importuning for texting the girl and inviting her to have sex with him at his home.

Foley, who is free on $10,000 bond, could face two years in prison, according to documents that contain the state’s recommended sentence.

Judge W. Wyatt McKay set sentencing for next month and declared Foley a Tier II sex offender, requiring him to register his whereabouts twice a year for 25 years.

Boil alert issued in Hubbard Township

HUBBARD TOWNSHIP – Due to a mainline water break, Trumbull County water customers along White Oak Drive in Hubbard Township were issued a boil alert on Wednesday.

Until further notice, residents are being asked to bring water meant for consumption to a rolling boil, then cool, before using.

Area news briefs

Girls plead guilty, get

probation in harassment

STEUBENVILLE – Two 16-year-old girls who used social media to send messages to a 16-year-old Weirton rape victim entered guilty pleas Friday to a telecommunication harassment misdemeanor charge and were placed on probation for six months.

The two Steubenville High School students also were sentenced by Jefferson County Juvenile Court Judge Samuel Kerr to 30 days in juvenile detention, but the judge suspended the sentence in favor of the probation and 40 hours of community service.

The two were initially charged with felony intimidation of a witness and aggravated menacing and telecommunication harassment, both misdemeanors.

Second spa employee

pleads to prostitution

NEWTON FALLS – The on-site manager of the former Rose Spa in Braceville was fined $1,500 and given a 60-day suspended jail sentence on each of three counts of misdemeanor prostitution that she pleaded no contest to Thursday.

Sun Cha Chae, 68, 950 Sandpiper Trail S.E., Warren, was originally charged with seven felony counts of promoting prostitution after Braceville police raided the spa April 4 after several patrons told police they paid for sex at the site.

Police found more than 200 condoms and nearly $8,000 inside the spa.

An employee at the former Rose Spa in Braceville pleaded no contest April 23 to reduced charges and was ordered to pay a fine.

Kyong Hwa Nguyen, 56, also of 950 Sandpiper Trail S.E., Warren, was charged with two third-degree misdemeanor counts of prostitution. In a plea deal, she was offered the chance to plead no contest to fourth-degree misdemeanor charges of criminal trespass. She was fined $250 on each count and ordered to pay additional court costs.

Ride of Silence set for

May 15 near Harding

WARREN – A Ride of Silence will take place at 7 p.m. May 15, starting at Elm Road and Atlantic Street N.E., near Warren G. Harding High School.

The Ride of Silence is an annual event that started in May 2003 in Dallas after a bicyclist there was killed by a bus driver. It has grown every year and now occurs on the third Wednesday in May.

This will be the first time the event is taking place in Warren.

The ride is seven miles, and its pace is no faster than 10 miles per hour.

Ride in Silence Warren is honoring the memories of Garrett Wonders, Greg Snyder, Emil Manus and Larry Furniss, as well as more than 700 cyclists killed nationwide each year while riding.

“With this ride, we hope to educate motorists and cyclists the rules of the road that cyclists have the legal right to the road and to watch out for us,” Jay Wonders said.

Wonders’ son, Garrett, 25, was killed nine years ago while training in South Carolina.

Wonders said there are Rides of Silence that take place in Columbus and Cleveland.

“I wanted to bring it closer to Warren,” he said.

Girard detective gets

task force award

GIRARD – A city police detective was nominated Thursday for a special award honoring officers who work for the Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force.

Greg Manente, who has worked with Girard police since 1989, was among six officers singled out for the award that was given to Ray Burant, with Cleveland police.

The Task Force held an awards ceremony Thursday at Ashland County Sheriff’s Office, honoring officers for their work in 2012.

Ohioans dispose

of unwanted pills

COLUMBUS – Attorney General Mike DeWine and the Drug Enforcement Administration said Ohio residents disposed of more than 32,300 pounds of unwanted prescription medications during Saturday’s drug take-back day, according to a release from DeWine’s office.

According to Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine, the DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take-Back Initiative provides a safe, convenient, and responsible means of prescription drug disposal.

“Improper use of prescription medications can be deadly, and it’s clear that Ohioans want to do everything they can to prevent abuse,” DeWine said in the release.

Area news briefs

Newton trustees asking for cemetery levy

NEWTON – Trustees are hoping to pass a levy to support their cemeteries that would cost a little less than $18 annually for owners of homes valued at $100,000 in the township and in Newton Falls.

The 5-year, 0.5-mill levy would bring in about $65,000 a year and would be the only levy supporting the cost of maintaining the township’s seven cemeteries, according to trustees.

The cemeteries cost about $46,000 to maintain per year and are currently funded through fees for various cemetery services and the sale of plots, trustees said. The cemetery fund had a deficit of close to $69,000 at the end of March.

Trustees said the levy, if passed, should rectify the deficit and maintain the cemeteries.

Police: Sex toys, snake taken in burglary

YOUNGSTOWN – A large-screen television, sex toys and a snake were reported stolen from a Reel Street apartment late Tuesday, police said.

Officers were called about 10:45 p.m. on a report of a fight. A man and a woman outside the building told them they had been robbed. The couple said they rent an upstairs apartment and left at 10 p.m. only to be told moments later in a phone call that their apartment was broken into, but not the downstairs apartment.

They returned home and found their 51-inch television, his 3-year-old snake and the toys gone. A report noted that the man worked for an adult gift shop and had recently returned from a sex seminar.

Reports state there was damage to an outside door frame but no damage to the inside.

An officer was called back at 1:15 a.m. on a report that the downstairs tenants returned the snake, police said.

Driver with wrench arrested after chase

YOUNGSTOWN – Police say a Hubbard man was charged with driving under suspension and aggravated menacing Tuesday morning after he followed a man downtown from the East Side and threatened him with a wrench.

A man reported about 7:40 a.m. that a person in a white truck started following him on Youngstown Hubbard Road and tried to run him off the road, at one point running his truck into a ditch on Jacobs Road, a police report states.

Officers caught up with the victim at Wood Street and Belmont Avenue downtown. The man in the truck, later identified as Walter Spinic, 62, ran toward the victim with a wrench and threatened to hurt him, reports state. Officers took the wrench and arrested Spinic.

The victim said he did not know why he was being followed.

Former library treasurer pleads guilty to thefts

WARREN – A former clerk / treasurer of the Kinsman Free Public Library pleaded guilty Wednesday to six counts related to theft in office and agreed to undergo a presentence investigation.

Sharon R. Vankanegan, 47, 8560 State St., Kinsman, was found guilty by Trumbull County Common Pleas Judge W. Wyatt McKay of one count of theft in office, one count of misuse of credit cards and four counts of forgery.

She agreed to repay $6,990 – the amount an audit shows was stolen from the library between August 2010 and January 2013. Assistant county prosecutor Chris Becker said Vankanegan used a library credit card at Sam’s Club to buy beer and other items.

Vankanegan was accused of forging library checks in late 2011 and early 2012. She has repaid the more than $5,000 from the forged checks, court records state.

Boil advisory lifted

in Brookfield

BROOKFIELD – The boil advisory that was issued Tuesday due to a water main break in the township has been lifted for the following areas: Warren-Sharon Road between Golf Drive and Yankee Run Road, Yankee Run Road, Brookfield and Lincoln avenues.

Area news briefs

Man sentenced for wife’s death in fight

YOUNGSTOWN – A 56-year-old Knapp Street man was sentenced to 11 years in prison Tuesday for the August 2011 death of his wife.

Daniel Wellington had his sentence handed down by Mahoning County Common Pleas Judge Maureen Sweeney for the charge of involuntary manslaughter, to which he pleaded guilty last month.

Wellington was charged with strangling his wife, Doris Wellington, 44, during an argument inside their home.

Wellington told police he and his wife were arguing about 1:10 a.m. Aug. 5 and she jumped on him while he was on the bed. He told police he grabbed her as she grabbed him from behind and they rolled off the bed. Wellington said in a police report that his wife’s head hit a table.

When officers arrived, Wellington was trying to revive his wife but was unable to do so.

Cause pending on body found in Warren

WARREN – City police have identified the body of a man found Monday morning at Pineview Memorial Park on Youngs-town Road S.E.

Warren Police Lt. Jeff Cole said investigators are waiting on word from the Trumbull County Coroner’s Office to determine how Raymond M. Rulong, 26, of Warren, died. His body was discovered at the cemetery around 7 a.m. Cole said there was no evidence of trauma.

Coroner Dr. Humphrey Germaniuk said that the cause of death is pending. He said there were no signs of foul play or trauma and that toxicology tests are being performed, which usually takes about eight weeks.

Teen rape case grand jury finishes first day

STEUBENVILLE – A grand jury on Tuesday began investigating whether other laws were broken in the case of a 16-year-old girl a judge determined was raped by two high school football players after an alcohol-fueled party last summer.

One of the questions before the 14-person panel meeting in Steubenville is likely to be whether adults such as coaches or school administrators knew about the rape allegation but failed to report it.

School Superintendent Mike McVey has previously acknowledged that he, other administrators and head football coach Reno Saccoccia were interviewed by investigators in the days leading up to the players’ March trial.

Newton Falls plans flushing of hydrants

NEWTON FALLS – The village will flush its hydrants beginning next month.

The flushing will begin at 8 a.m. May 20 and continue routinely through June 7. Residents of the listed streets and adjacent areas should be alert to the possibility of discolored water and / or low pressure.

For a list of locations by date, visit ci.newtonfalls.oh.us and click on the Community News and Announcements link.

Weathersfield sets meeting on sewers

WEATHERSFIELD – Weathersfield trustees will hold a meeting at 7:30 p.m. Monday to discuss the proposed Heaton Chute sanitary sewer project.

Residents and business owners of the Heaton Chute area in the township are asked to meet at the United Steelworkers of America Union Hall, 1265 state Route 169, Niles. Trumbull County Sanitary Engineer’s Office representatives will make a presentation and answer questions.

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