HARTZELL KILLING 4 face charges of hindering manhunt

One defendant was due in municipal court the day the cop was shot.
By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Four men who prosecutors say bogged down a search for the suspect in a cop killing have been indicted.
A Mahoning County grand jury secretly indicted them as John Does on Thursday. Their identities were released this morning after their arrests.
Indicted on charges of obstructing justice were:
UFrank A. Howley Jr., 22, of 1811 Donald Ave., Youngstown, who was arrested at home.
UForrest A. Rupp Jr., 23, of 1881 Massachusetts Ave., Boardman, arrested at Bliss Manufacturing.
UJonathan A. Kuzan, 23, of 2507 Oakwood Ave., Youngstown, arrested at home.
ULamar Butler, 22, of 3445 Stratmore Ave., Youngstown, arrested at home.
The four men are friends of Martin L. Koliser Jr., who fled to Florida on April 29. That's the day police say he shot to death city Patrolman Michael T. Hartzell in his cruiser downtown and critically wounded Donell J. Rowe outside a West Side bar.
Koliser, 30, of Boardman, was arrested in Florida on April 30 and was transported this week to Lorain Correctional Institution on a parole violation. From there, he will be brought to Mahoning County for arraignment on charges of aggravated murder and attempted murder with death penalty specifications.
Arrests
Detective Sgt. Pat Kelly, commander of the street crimes unit, provided four teams of officers with the addresses the four friends would likely be at this morning. The teams made the arrests within 30 minutes.
If convicted, all four face up to five years in prison.
Arraignment will be at Mahoning County Common Pleas Court. The date and time were not immediately available.
Police Chief Robert E. Bush Jr. said 38 people had information that helped in the search for Koliser. Of those, the four men arrested today "consciously assisted Koliser and purposefully led us astray," he said.
Police said the sequence of events began with Howley.
Koliser, after the bar shooting at 12:15 a.m. April 29, drove off in Howley's 1984 black and gray Lincoln Town Car. Howley then drove Koliser's 1991 green Chevy Corsica to the 1811 Donald address, where police found it.
Municipal court records show that Howley has been convicted of numerous traffic offenses, including driving under suspension and loud music. He has also been convicted of possessing drug paraphernalia, disorderly conduct and obstructing justice.
Rupp knew Koliser in prison and both were paroled Dec. 12, 2002. The obstruction charge puts Rupp's parole in jeopardy. Rupp was sent to prison May 12, 1999, on an aggravated robbery conviction.
In 1998, Rupp was convicted in municipal court of a drug paraphernalia charge. He still owes $110 in fines and costs.
The morning Hartzell was killed, Rupp picked up Koliser at the WRTA bus station downtown and took the fugitive to Kuzan's apartment on the West Side, where Koliser showered and changed clothes, police said.
Rupp, who was driving his girlfriend's 1990 black Oldsmobile Calais, later allowed Koliser to drive off in it. Koliser eventually ended up in Florida, where he was captured.
Police said Rupp initially told them that Koliser stole the car, then later recanted.
Took taxi to Oakwood
Koliser drove off in the Calais from state Route 46 in Austintown, leaving Rupp without a ride. Rupp was picked up in a taxi and driven to Kuzan's Oakwood apartment, police said.
Butler was also at the Oakwood apartment and paid for Rupp's cab ride, police said.
Kuzan was due in municipal court April 29, the day Hartzell was killed. Kuzan was charged in June 2002 with speeding and driving under suspension, and the case has been reset at least four times.
Butler's municipal court records show only two speed violations from May 2002.
meade@vindy.com