Abduction, rape case

Abduction, rape case
LISBON -- A Columbiana County grand jury will determine whether to indict a Salineville man in connection with the Jan. 20 abduction and rape of a 16-year-old Salineville girl. Douglas Davis, 31, of Walnut Ridge, appeared Monday in Columbiana County Municipal Court for a preliminary hearing, during which he requested that his case be bound over to the grand jury. Davis was charged in January with kidnapping and rape by Salineville police. The first-degree felony charges each bear 10-year maximum prison terms. Davis is in the county jail on a $500,000 bond.
Man's autopsy results
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- A 44-year-old man found dead along West State Street died of natural causes, said Lawrence County Coroner Russell S. Noga. Mark G. Stotts of R.D. 7, New Castle, was found at 8 a.m. Sunday on wooded walking path by a hiker. There is not sidewalk in the area. Noga said an autopsy revealed no broken bones or other injuries that could have contributed to his death. An autopsy was performed Monday afternoon at Ellwood City Hospital by Dr. Karl Williams. Noga said they are waiting for the results of toxicology tests but the man had apparently been in poor health over the last few years. They believe he died sometime around midnight Sunday. Chief Deputy Coroner Al DeCarbo investigated the matter.
Car hits police vehicle
SHARON, Pa. -- A 52-year-old Masury man's car rammed the back of a police car at East State Street and Chestnut Avenue around 1:20 a.m. today. Police said the cruiser was westbound and stopped behind a car waiting for the red light to change when the Masury man failed to stop and hit the back of the police vehicle. Damage was minor, and the officer, Patrolman John Zec, complained of some minor pain, police said. The Brookfield driver was charged with driving under the influence and careless driving and held in jail overnight for arraignment today.
Authorities probe fire
SHARON, Pa. -- Authorities are investigating a suspicious fire that did extensive damage to a vacant house at 479 N. Water Ave. around 4:40 p.m. Monday. Firefighters said the front door was standing open when they arrived at the scene and flames were visible through the windows of the second floor. The fire appeared to have been started in two second-floor bedrooms, firefighters said. The fire burned through the attic and part of the roof, firefighters said. The owner of the house was unknown this morning.
Dispelling a rumor
GREENVILLE, Pa. -- Hempfield Township police are trying to clear up a rumor that they have been finding dead bodies in the township.
Police have received dozens of calls in the last week from residents asking about possible homicides and kidnappings of young girls, said Police Chief Brian Arthur.
"A rumor has been going around town that we have been finding dead bodies all over the place. It's just not true," Arthur said, explaining the rumor apparently started when someone spotted a ball of plastic in the weeds along Wasser Bridge Road and told others that it looked like a body. It turned out to be some evergreen tree branches wrapped in plastic, he said.
At one point, the rumors had police finding as many as five bodies in the township and two more in Sharon, Arthur said, adding that none of it was true.
Illegal alien found
HERMITAGE, Pa. -- A motorist stopped for speeding on Pa. Route 18 near Wilson Road turned out to be an illegal alien. Police said Giorgi Natadze, 39, now living in Columbus, had a foreign driver's license from the Republic of Georgia when he was stopped around 5 a.m. Monday but couldn't produce a green card or visa showing he was in this country legally. Police checked with the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service and learned Natadze was supposed to have left the country several years ago. He was held in jail and turned over to INS agents later in the day.
Man faces charges
HERMITAGE, Pa. -- Police have charged a Sharon man with rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and aggravated indecent assault. Scott W. Tatta, 33, of North Oakland Avenue, is accused of having improper sexual contact with an 8-year-old Hermitage girl between June and December 2000, police said. He turned himself in Monday at the office of District Justice Henry Russo after learning a warrant had been issued for his arrest. He was arraigned and freed on his own recognizance pending a preliminary hearing.