Police arrest man after reports of gunfire

YOUNGSTOWN — Police arrested a 21-year-old Park Vista Drive man near the Mahoning County Jail early Sunday after police responded to a complaint that he may have been shooting at another car while chasing it downtown. Carl T. Hammonds was charged with carrying a concealed weapon and trafficking in drugs after police stopped him on Wood Street near Fifth Avenue around 2:30 a.m. Sunday.

Police were looking for a white Cadillac after police received a 911 call from a woman saying someone in a white Cadillac was shooting at her in her green Cavalier near the YMCA downtown. An officer said he heard three or four shots being fired in the area. A short time later, another officer saw a white Cadillac tailgating a green Cavalier at high speed and activated his lights and siren near the Mahoning County Jail.

A female driving the Cavalier stopped her car about 50 feet in front of the Cadillac. When Hammonds was being arrested he yelled toward the woman and another female with her, saying, “Now look what you’ve done. ...”

Police found a handgun in the Cadillac’s glove compartment and a plastic bag containing crack cocaine. A 17-year-old male in Hammonds’ car was released after being charged with a curfew violation. The women denied telling the 911 dispatcher that anyone was shooting at them.