Cops probe roots of fatal kidnapping

The police chief has assigned several special units to the South Side.
YOUNGSTOWN -- Anthony Brock -- shot in the head -- died wearing a black ski mask and bulletproof vest with a Glock handgun tucked in his pocket.
The 34-year-old Youngstown man, identified Tuesday by police, was fatally shot after the abduction of two teenagers on the South Side went haywire.
Brock was found dead inside a 2000 silver Hyundai that ended up on a sidewalk and lawn in the 700 block of Cambridge Street around 9:15 p.m. Monday.
Blood covered the interior of the Hyundai, owned by a Detroit Avenue woman, and its windshield was shattered on the driver's side, where Brock lay slumped across the seat. An AK-47 assault rifle casing was found on the floor near Brock's feet, and a revolver was found near the driver's side door.
The Hyundai had crashed into a parked car before coming to rest.
Kidnap victims
A few houses away lay one of the kidnap victims, Rockale Bailey, 18, of Lansdowne Boulevard. He had been shot in the left elbow.
The second kidnap victim, Bailey's cousin, 16-year-old Lamont Wright of Youngstown, complained of pains in his abdomen, reportedly from being beaten when abducted. He was walking around and talking on his cell phone when police arrived.
Bailey and Wright were taken to St. Elizabeth Health Center.
Police said Brock's accomplice in the kidnappings, Anthony West, 20, of East Lucius Avenue, was shot in the head. He ran to a house in the 700 block of Palmer Street to seek help and was taken to St. Elizabeth's.
The first officers to arrive on Cambridge found a bloody AK-47 assault rifle near the intersection of Cambridge and Homestead Avenue.
Lt. Robin Lees, Youngstown Police Department spokesman, is asking that anyone with information call Detective Sgt. Jose Morales at (330) 742-8258. Morales and Detective Sgt. Gerry Maietta are investigating the homicide and kidnapping.
Investigation
Lees said the detectives are looking into the possibility that the abduction of Bailey and Wright is connected to other crimes -- a shooting, robbery or homicide.
"There had to be some kind of grudge, some past offense involved," he said. The four involved "had a relationship," but exactly what kind is what detectives are working to find out, he said.
To stem further violence, Police Chief Robert E. Bush Jr. has moved members of the Street Crimes Unit, Violent Crimes Task Force and Vice Squad to the South Side for saturation patrols, Lees said.
Lees said it appears West had the AK-47. Lees said he didn't know the caliber of the Glock.
The kidnapping of Bailey and Wright reportedly took place in the 500 block of East Philadelphia Avenue. Black electrical tape was used to bind their hands behind their backs.
Lees said Wright recognized Brock, despite the ski mask. Wright, who hadn't been living at home, went to a house on East Philadelphia to gather some clothes.
Lees said the investigation shows that Wright and Bailey had been in the back seat of the Hyundai. Wright was able to free himself, grab one of Brock's two guns and shoot Brock, Lees said. What followed was a shootout inside the Hyundai between West and Wright.
Wright and Bailey then escaped from the Hyundai and ran.
Lees stressed that what took place wasn't a random kidnapping and there was no running gunbattle on Cambridge. The shooting was confined to the inside of the car, which just happened to be on Cambridge.
Witness
A witness told police he heard five or six gunshots then saw two men running in the 700 block of Cambridge. The victims, Bailey and Wright, fell, and the witness went to help.
A resident of the neighborhood brought out a knife to cut away the tape that still bound Bailey's hands. Another neighbor brought out blankets.
Brock is the city's 19th homicide victim of the year. Last year, the city recorded 19 homicides.