Woman, 93, found dead in driveway

AUSTINTOWN — A 93-year-old woman was found dead about 4:45 a.m. Thursday in the driveway of a home on Bangor Court, about 200 yards away from her Vollmer Drive residence.

Police identified the woman as Hattie R. Prosen and discovered the door to her home was open with no one home when they arrived there a short time later.

Rick Jamrozik, an investigator with the Mahoning County coroner’s office, said nothing was found to suggest foul play was involved in her death, but an autopsy will be performed in Cleveland.

It appears the woman wandered off from her home sometime late Wednesday or early Thursday and died from either natural causes or hypothermia, Jamrozik said. Paramedics told police Prosen appeared to have been dead several hours.

Prosen was wearing a coat, walking with a cane, carrying a starter pistol in her jacket pocket and had a large amount of cash in a bank envelope in her pants pockets, police said.

Michael J. Solvay of Bangor Court called police about 4:45 a.m. when he noticed the body in the middle of his driveway.