YOUNGSTOWN Man charged in stabbing death

The suspect and the victim were drinking when a fight broke out, police said.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- A 49-year-old man whom police describe as a drifter was to be arraigned today on a voluntary manslaughter charge in the stabbing death of a drinking buddy.
Police Lt. Robin Lees said it was solid police work and following up on leads by Detective Sgts. Daryl Martin and Jerry Shuster that led to the arrest Wednesday of John Griffin on the felony charge. Griffin is being held in the Mahoning County Jail.
"They got an arrest, and there wasn't a lot to go on," Lees said. "They started with ... [the victim's] relatives and acquaintances. There wasn't a lot of information, but they checked all the leads and it led to the arrest."
Police said Griffin, who didn't list an address, was drinking at a home on South Avenue with Mathew S. Saunders, 51, of Elberon Street, Salem, who died Saturday morning as a result of being stabbed four times Friday night. Griffin and Saunders got into a fight, and the Salem man was stabbed twice in his abdomen and twice in his back, Lees said.
Crashed van
Saunders got into his 1985 Ford Econoline van, drove across town and entered Interstate 680 at the southbound Belle Vista and Connecticut avenues exit going the wrong way about 6:30 p.m. Friday. Saunders swerved to avoid an oncoming car and hit a guard rail twice before wedging his vehicle into the rail.
"We believe he was trying to take himself to the hospital," Lees said.
Police at the accident scene didn't know that Saunders, who had a strong smell of alcohol on his breath, had been stabbed. They believed his injuries were the result of the accident.
"Nobody thought he was seriously wounded," Lees said.
Doctors at St. Elizabeth Health Center, where Saunders was taken, discovered the stab wounds. Saunders died at the hospital early Saturday.
With the assistance of the Girard Police Department, Youngstown officers were able to track down Griffin on a Girard street and bring him in for questioning Tuesday.
"It was difficult finding people who knew [Saunders and Griffin] because of their lifestyle, but we followed some leads," Lees said.
The pair may have met at the Rescue Mission of Mahoning Valley on Martin Luther King Boulevard, according to police.
Police don't know if there are any witnesses to the stabbing, and haven't been able to pinpoint a motive for the death, Lees said.
skolnick@vindy.com