DRIVE-BY SHOOTING 3 Campbell men arrested in 1999 South Side attack

One man, in jail since 1999, reached a plea agreement last month.
By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- After nearly five years, three Campbell men have been charged in a drive-by shooting that killed Sylvester Patterson and wounded two others.
Patterson, 25, of St. Louis Avenue, was shot once in the head when occupants of a blue Astrovan opened fire in front of 130 W. Glenaven Ave. on July 10, 1999. Eric Little and Anthony Floyd, both of Youngstown, were hit.
Names of suspects
Arrested Monday evening on the East Side were Atiba Collier 27, of Morley Avenue and Eric VanCobb, 24, of Madison Avenue, said Lt. Robin Lees, Youngstown Police Department spokesman. Also charged is Teangelo Stores, 24, who has been imprisoned at the Belmont Correctional Institution since January 2001 on an unrelated drug conviction.
Collier, VanCobb and Stores were secretly indicted last week by a Mahoning County grand jury on charges of aggravated murder, attempted murder and felonious assault. The charges include a firearm specification.
Collier and VanCobb were to be arraigned today in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court.
Guilty plea
Last month, Leroy Gore Jr., 31, of Campbell pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter for the drive-by shooting. The charge was reduced from murder. Gore also pleaded guilty to two counts of felonious assault and one count of using a firearm to commit the crimes.
In exchange for the pleas, prosecutors dismissed two counts of attempted murder and one count of felonious assault. Gore's plea agreement calls for a 12-year prison sentence.
Gore, who agreed to cooperate with investigators, will be sentenced Thursday in common pleas court.
He has been in jail since August 1999, first awaiting trial and now awaiting sentencing. The time he's spent behind bars will be deducted from the 12-year sentence.
Many postponements
His case was postponed 13 times over the years for a variety of reasons.
The case became fodder for the March 2 primary election, with an unsuccessful challenger for county prosecutor criticizing Prosecutor Paul J. Gains for the delays. Gains, who said the delays were legitimate, won the primary.
meade@vindy.com