BOARDMAN Family thwarts robbery

Police suggested that it's safer to cooperate with an intruder.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- Courage, quick thinking and the protective hand of God are what one township man says saved his family from harm and a robbery.
The man, who manages and lives at the Terrace Motel on Market Street, said he and his wife were awakened just before 3:30 a.m. by the customer bell in the motel lobby. His wife went to answer the bell but was heard screaming a short time later.
The manager went down to the lobby, followed by his 17-year-old son. A 13-year-old son remained asleep upstairs.
The first thing the manager saw when he reached the lobby area was his wife standing frozen with a gun pointed directly at her head. The weapon was held by a six-foot, burly man wearing a hooded shirt covering his face.
What happened next: The intruder demanded money, but almost simultaneously the manager and his son rushed toward the man, grabbing the gun, which police later discovered was an imitation firearm.
A fight took place in the lobby, but the two-against-one match was too much for the would-be thief, who ended up pinned to the floor waiting for police.
Police later arrested the intruder, a 35-year-old man of East Lucius Avenue, Youngstown. He is charged with aggravated robbery, two counts of misdemeanor assault and one count of drug paraphernalia, and was in Mahoning County jail this morning awaiting arraignment later today.
"I don't know why I reacted the way that I did. I guess it was just concern for my family's safety and seeing that gun pointed at my wife's head. Something inside me just said 'get him,' " the motel manager said.
Police advice: Detective Steve Riwniak, Boardman police department, suggest that others faced with the same situation cooperate with any intruder as much as possible to avoid injury. He said it is good to avoid confrontation, get a good description of the attacker and call police immediately.
The motel manager said, in hindsight, he realizes the danger he and his family were in and that someone could have been injured in the scuffle. Still, he said, if the situation were the same, his response would likely be the same.
The manager, also a pastor at a local church, said he thanks God for his strength, mercy and protection to his family.