Robbed at gunpoint

Robbed at gunpoint

WARREN — Two city men reported they were robbed at gunpoint at 6:30 p.m. Saturday as they were leaving an apartment at 1280 Robert Avenue, the Stonegate Place apartments near Tod Avenue Northwest.

The victims, ages 19 and 55, said they were in the parking lot, walking away from the apartment, when two men who had come out of the same building approached. One of the men put a handgun to the younger man’s chest and demanded money and cigarettes.

They got $115 in cash, a wallet and cigarettes and ran back toward the apartment building, while the victims went in another direction, the victims told police. The victims described their assailants as being in the late teens or early 20s and each one wearing a bandanna over his face.

Stolen car in accident

WARREN — Police cited a 60-year-old Orlo Drive woman for leaving her keys in a motor vehicle, after someone drove off in the car and got involved in an accident on South Street near Chestnut Street about 4:45 p.m. Sunday.

The woman reported the vehicle stolen from her home a few minutes after a man matching the description of her boyfriend was involved in an accident in the car, police said.

The driver of the stolen car was traveling east in the wrong lane of traffic, police said. A 53-year-old Warren woman coming the other way tried to avoid a head-on collision and ended up with damage to the right rear of her car as it struck the front corner of the stolen car, police said.

The stolen car left the road and got stuck in snow, police said. The driver of the stolen car then fled on foot into a nearby McDonald’s restaurant, the victim said. The woman involved in the accident was not injured, police said.

Christmas tree disposal

HOWLAND — Christmas tree pickup and drop-off service will continue in the township through Friday.

Residents who wish to rid their homes of the seasonal tree may place it on the curb or drop it off at the Public Works Department, at 3600 N. River Road, through Friday. Drop-off hours are between 7:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

The department will not accept trees with ornaments or trimmings. Call (330) 856-4037 if you have questions.

Robbery suspect held

CLEVELAND (AP) — A federal magistrate has ordered a man suspected in a series of bank robberies, including one in Austintown, held without bail while a grand jury takes up the case.

Kenneth Gibson, 33, of Cleveland, appeared Monday before Magistrate Judge Kenneth McHargh. Gibson, an ex-convict, is in the custody of U.S. marshals.

The FBI said Gibson is suspected in a dozen bank holdups dating back two months and stretching from Erie, Pa., to Toledo. The National City Bank in Austintown was held up Nov. 3. No weapon was displayed in the holdups, which were captured on clear surveillance photos.

FBI: Violent crime drops

YOUNGSTOWN — The FBI said preliminary figures indicate that as a whole, law enforcement agencies throughout the United States reported a decrease of 3.5 percent in the number of violent crimes brought to their attention for the first six months of 2008 when compared with figures reported for the same time in 2007.

The violent crime category includes murder, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. The number of property crimes in the United States from January to June of 2008 decreased 2.5 percent when compared with data from the same time period in 2007. Property crimes include burglary, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft.

Arson is also a property crime, but data for arson are not included in property crime totals. Figures for 2008 indicate that arson decreased 5.6 percent in 2008 when compared with 2007 figures.

Seeking re-election

NEW CASTLE, Pa. — Lawrence County District Attorney John Bongivengo has announced he will seek re-election.

Bongivengo, a Democrat and a New Castle resident, took office in January 2006.

Since taking office, he said, he has instituted the Take Back Your Neighborhood program and has increased the percentage of defendants being sent to state prisons to the highest of any fifth-class county in Pennsylvania.

Bongivengo said he is the first sitting district attorney to obtain a death-penalty verdict in 17 years.

Dennis Reed, who shot his 28-year-old girlfriend to death in 2001, was sentenced to die in April 2008. An execution date has not been set while the sentence is under appeal.

Impersonating an officer

NEW CASTLE, Pa. — State police here said a woman was stopped on Pa. Route 60 by a man who was impersonating a police officer.

Police said the woman was driving south around 3:10 p.m. Friday and was stopped between Mitchell and Kings Chapel roads.

The man got the woman’s drivers license, registration and insurance information and then left, driving south.

Police described the man as in his 40s and wearing a black uniform and a tan hat. He was driving a tan, full-size car, possibly a Ford Crown Victoria.

Public invited to meeting

HOWLAND — Township officials are inviting Howland residents to take part in a public meeting of the planning committee of 2009 at 6 p.m. Thursday in the township administration building. Commission members are asking residents to weigh in on topics such as land use, transportation and pedestrian connectivity, economic development, environmental quality, public health and housing, and more. The session will be an hour long. For more information, visit www.planhowland.com.

Campbell board elects officers at meeting

CAMPBELL — James Cioffi and Tony Kelly were elected 2009 president and vice president, respectively, of the Campbell Board of Education at its reorganization meeting Monday. Other board members are: Beth Donofrio, Dominic Medina and Karen Repasky.

The board voted to continue meeting at 7 p.m. on the third Tuesday of the month in Room 310 at Memorial High School, 280 Sixth St., and approved board member compensation at $125 per meeting for a maximum of 18 meetings per year.