Businessman faces charges in another sex case

The defendant’s wife stalked a
firefighter in Campbell, police said.

By PATRICIA MEADE

VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER

YOUNGSTOWN — Three women who entered Daniel Tatarciuc’s world — as employee, job hunter and customer — allege they were grabbed and kissed by the businessman.

Tatarciuc, 51, is accused of grabbing a woman’s breasts and kissing her neck Sept. 7, the third day she worked for him at Paul’s Grocery, 1133 Glenwood Ave. The 43-year-old Breaden Street woman told police she pushed him away and he chased her around the store until a customer came in and she left.

After an investigation by Patrolwoman Sue Ellis of the Family Services Investigation Unit, Tatarciuc was charged with sexual imposition and molesting females, both misdemeanors. He lists one residence as a small trailer behind the convenience store and also a house on Van Buren Avenue in Campbell.

Tatarciuc was arraigned Thursday in municipal court on the charges, and a pretrial hearing was set for Nov. 8. He was released after his estranged wife posted 10 percent of the $3,500 bond, according to the court file.

When Tatarciuc was arrested Sept. 17, the jail would not accept him because of his high blood pressure. He was taken to St. Elizabeth Health Center and a police hold was placed on him pending his release.

Charges in Campbell

Similar groping charges filed by two women against Tatarciuc in Campbell, where he managed Daniel’s Cafe, 126 12th St., are also pending. He faces two counts of sexual imposition and one count of unlawful restraint.

The Campbell charges, combined as one case, were transferred to Struthers Municipal Court and trial is set for Oct. 15 with Judge James R. Lanzo.

In May 2006, a 19-year-old Campbell woman told police that she was at Daniel’s Cafe and Tatarciuc, whom she described as the owner, offered her a job and had her follow him to a nearby building on Robinson Road where he talked about his plans for the place. The woman said he lunged at her, grabbed her waist, pinned her arms between their bodies and began kissing her as she struggled to get away, reports show. Her allegations resulted in charges of unlawful restraint and sexual imposition.

In December 2005, an 18-year-old Campbell woman reported to police that she’d been at Daniel’s Cafe, waiting for her food, when Tatarciuc asked her to come upstairs to the jewelry shop. She told police he locked the door and then started to rub her breasts and between her legs, stopping only when she threatened to scream. The woman added that she was very scared, believing he was going to rape her. Her allegation resulted in a charge of sexual imposition.

Daniel’s Cafe has been renamed Marina’s Restaurant. A sign out front last week announced its reopening was Sept. 19.

In midst of divorce

Tatarciuc could not be reached. His estranged wife, Marina Tatarciuc, who answered the restaurant phone Thursday, said her husband no longer works there. Court records show they are in the process of a divorce.

Marina Tatarciuc, meanwhile, made news in July when she was charged with stalking a Campbell firefighter, breaking and entering and using the department’s emergency line in attempts to contact the firefighter.

The 47-year-old Van Buren Avenue woman pleaded guilty to breaking and entering in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court on Aug. 30, court records show. She applied for and was granted admission to mental health court. Sentencing was held in abeyance, the assignment office said.

meade@vindy.com