Teens arrested in arson

Teens arrested in arson
YOUNGSTOWN -- Four South Side boys, two 13 and two 14, were arrested Monday on two counts of arson in fires set last week, said Capt. Alvin Ware, commander of the arson bureau. Ware said the boys dropped a lighted broom in a shed at New Bethel Baptist Church on Hillman Street and the shed caught fire. Damage was set at $1,000. The boys next burned a vacant house at 1620 Overland Ave. Damage was set at $5,000, a total loss. Ware said witnesses saw the boys at each fire. The teenagers also tried to set fire to the vacant Monroe Elementary School but couldn't get it going, he said.
SA kettles robbed
YOUNGSTOWN -- A Salvation Army worker had her kettle with roughly $50 in it stolen about 6:15 p.m. Monday outside Walgreens on Belmont Avenue. The woman told police that a man approached and grabbed the kettle, telling her, "You're not allowed to fight back," reports show. The woman held onto the kettle until the robber kicked her in the knee. He put the kettle into a waiting car and left with an accomplice, police said. A kettle was stolen from outside a store in Boardman last week.
2 robberies probed
YOUNGSTOWN -- Police are investigating two robberies that happened Monday. A man snatched the purse of 63-year-old Kensington Avenue woman waiting for a bus in the 1400 block of Elm Street about noon. At 10:15 p.m., a gunman appeared out of the shadows on South Avenue near Krakusy Hall and took the purse of a 32-year-old woman walking by. The robber shoved her to the ground before fleeing, reports show.
Patrolman arraigned
BOARDMAN -- Youngstown Patrolman Chris Bonacci was arraigned Monday in Mahoning County Court and pleaded innocent to charges of assault and criminal damaging. He is accused of choking his girlfriend, ramming his car into hers and deflating her tire over the weekend. Bonacci, 32, remains on the job. He posted $2,250 bond when arrested early Sunday. He's due back in court Jan. 6.
Food drive at theater
BOARDMAN -- Anyone who brings a nonperishable food item to Cinema South 10, 7420 South Ave., through Thursday will receive a free "Looney Tune: Back In Action" poster. The food collected will be given to Second Harvest Food Bank.
Recycle, Ohio! grants
YOUNGSTOWN -- Mahoning and Columbiana counties each received $84,900; Youngstown received $56,600; and the Geauga/Trumbull Solid Waste Management District received $162,725 from Recycle, Ohio! grants given for recycling collection, waste reduction activities, community outreach campaigns and litter prevention.
Statewide, 98 communities and counties received $6.9 million Monday from the program, administered by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Funding for the program comes from a corporate franchise tax on businesses that manufacture or sell products in Ohio that might become litter.
Milton trustees meeting
LAKE MILTON -- The Milton Township trustees meeting that had been scheduled for tonight is canceled.
Sharing tree in Liberty
LIBERTY -- For the fifth year, a sharing tree is on display in the township administration building for residents to donate books, toys, clothing and turkeys to needy families. The tree will bear lists of items that area children and their families need for the holidays. The tree is up through Dec. 10. Call (330) 759-1315.