MAHONING COUNTY Deputy sheriffs arrest 8 in sweep

The sweep involved charges from the child support and human services agencies.
By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- During a warrant sweep, Mahoning County deputy sheriffs found Rodney Bacorn in a Warren apartment -- hiding in a closet under a blanket.
"When we knocked on the door, we heard movement inside the apartment and observed someone approach and look through the peephole in the door," deputies Carolyn Arnold and Greg Meier said in their report. "The suspect refused to open the door."
The manager at Bacorn's apartment complex on Berkshire Road used a passkey Thursday to let the deputies and Warren police inside. Bacorn, 41, was found in the closet in a child's bedroom, deputies said.
Bacorn, who was ordered out at gunpoint, said he was only hiding because he wanted to contact someone on the Mahoning Valley Law Enforcement Task Force to see why deputies were there, reports show. Deputies provided him with a copy of his indictment.
A Mahoning County grand jury indicted Bacorn in September on two counts of using deception to obtain dangerous drugs.
Also arrested
Aside from Bacorn, the warrant sweep resulted in the arrest of seven others, said sheriff's Maj. Michael Budd. Warrants related to charges that involve Mahoning County's Child Support Enforcement Agency and Department of Human Services.
Teletypes were also sent to Florida, Oklahoma and Arizona in an effort to locate fugitives. In Arizona, police arrested Deborah Landgraff, 40, formerly of Youngstown, for failure to pay child support, Budd said.
Also arrested Thursday were:
UMelvin Williams, 30, of West LaClede Avenue, charged with failure to appear for a child support hearing in July.
UBrian K. Spivey, 33, of North Hartford Avenue, charged with a probation violation for failure to pay child support.
UDennis Collier, 26, of East Philadelphia Avenue, charged with failure to pay child support.
UKathy Fire Baranovich, 42, of Carnegie Avenue, charged with theft, tampering with records and falsification. The indictment lists the complaining agencies as the Mahoning County Department of Jobs and Ohio Works First, where she is accused of making false statements to obtain unemployment compensation.
UJoseph C. Hay, 36, of St. Andrews Circle, Canfield, charged with failure to appear for a court hearing. Budd said this is also a child support case.
UYarneeka Robbins, 25, of West Chalmers Avenue, charged with felony theft. The charge was handed up by a Mahoning County grand jury.
UJerry Cole, 47, of Edwards Street, charged with failing to report to jail. The conviction was not immediately available.
meade@vindy.com