Woman charged

Woman charged

BOARDMAN — Police charged a 32-year-old woman with robbery, criminal damaging and possession of criminal tools.

Kismet N. Johnson of East Pasadena Avenue, Youngstown, was taken to the Mahoning County jail.

Police were called about 1:30 p.m. Dec. 18 to the Buckle store at the Southern Park Mall. Store employees told police that Johnson went into a fitting room with two pairs of jeans that were tagged with security sensors.

When one of the employees asked Johnson if she needed help, Johnson handed the employee the jeans over the fitting room door. The employee noticed that the security tags had been cut off, a police report said.

When confronted, Johnson pushed one employee and fought with mall security, the report said. Police found two knives in Johnson’s purse which they believe were used to remove the security tags from the clothing, according to the report.

Homicide suspect jailed

YOUNGSTOWN — The city man charged with the city’s most recent homicide is in the Mahoning County jail on a $1 million bond.

Marcel Roberson, 27, of Tod Lane, appeared Monday before Magistrate Anthony Sertick of Youngstown Municipal Court for arraignment. The magistrate set bond at $1 million.

Prosecutors told the court Roberson has an extensive criminal record including domestic violence, aggravated menacing, carrying a concealed weapon, possession of criminal tools, possession of drugs and other drug-related charges in Georgia.

Toy gun confiscated

GIRARD — A toy submachine gun that shoots rubber pellets was confiscated by police from a residence in the 500 block of East Kline Street after two women, one a U.S. postal carrier, reported being hit by something the afternoon of Dec. 18.

The mail carrier told police she felt she was shot with something in her buttocks but was not injured. A woman walking on Kline Street reported a similar experience, feeling “shot” in her left hand. The woman happened to talk to the postal carrier and they compared their experiences. The women told police they noticed a man watching them from an East Kline residence.

Police probe burglary

YOUNGSTOWN — Police are looking for two men who burglarized an occupied home, holding a gun to the head of a teenage boy.

According to police, the 17-year-old Rush Boulevard boy was lying on a couch Sunday evening at his South Side home when he heard a knock on the door. The boy said he recognized one of the men as a friend of his brother’s, but when he opened the door the man put a gun to his head and forced him to lay on a couch.

The teen told police a second man game into the home and stole a video-game system and some games while he was being held at gunpoint. The boy’s mother and father were upstairs in the home at the time of the robbery.

Marketing scam

COLUMBUS — As holiday shopping reaches its peak and vast numbers of Ohioans are awaiting and receiving package deliveries, Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray warned consumers Monday to keep a sharp eye out for phony package delivery postcards being sent to consumers around the state.

Some Ohioans have already received the postcards, which say, “pickup notice” and “sorry we missed you!” Such cards can list a package number and an 800 phone number for consumers to call to schedule a pickup.

When consumers call, however, they find out that there is no real parcel to be delivered; instead, the notice was just a marketing ploy.

“The company never intends to deliver a package to the consumer. It’s just a trick to get consumers to call,” Cordray said in a press release.

If you receive a questionable notice of this sort, report it to Cordray’s office at www.SpeakOutOhio.gov or by calling (800) 282-0515.