Police arrest robbery suspect

Authorities had already been alerted to a problem before the robbery occurred.

STAFF REPORT

BOARDMAN — Police credited an alert Hudson Drive neighbor with aiding in the arrest of an armed robbery suspect.

Police Chief Patrick Berarducci said two young men forced their way into a home in the 3900 block of Hudson shortly after noon Friday and robbed the two occupants, a woman and her mother, at gunpoint.

A neighbor had spotted the two men walking around yards in the area minutes earlier, however, and had already called 911 to report their suspicious behavior, Berarducci said.

The two men were fleeing as officers arrived and police chased them, the chief said, noting that one officer suffered a knee injury in the pursuit and was treated at St. Elizabeth Health Center.

Boardman police sealed off the area and Youngstown police came to the scene with a canine unit. The dog tracked one of the suspects, a 17-year-old Youngstown boy, to the 400 block of West Midlothian Boulevard where he was arrested on an armed robbery charge, Berarducci said. He was being held in a juvenile detention facility pending arraignment, the chief said.

Police found jewelry in his pocket that had been taken from the residence, Berarducci said.

The second suspect, believed to be the one with a weapon, eluded capture and police were attempting to identify him late Friday, the chief said.

The woman told authorities that she heard a knock on her door and found two young men who said they were registering voters. The pair forced their way into the home and one of them pulled a handgun and demanded money, she told police.

They got no cash but did steal some jewelry before fleeing the residence, Berarducci said.

The woman was in the process of calling police when the first officers arrived and gave chase to the robbers, the chief said.

The victims weren’t hurt although the woman was pushed down by the robbers, Berarducci said.