9-year-old girl escapes abduction

9-year-old girl escapes abduction

WARREN

A 9-year-old Deerfield Avenue Southwest girl told police that a man in a white T-shirt tried to abduct her from the sidewalk at the corner of Deerfield and Southwest Boulevard about 9 p.m. Tuesday.

The girl said an unidentified man came up behind her and put a white towel over her face that smelled like rubbing alcohol. The man told the girl to “breathe” three times while holding her by one shoulder, she said.

The girl broke free and ran down Southwest Boulevard with the man following her a short distance, she said.

The girl’s cousin then confronted a man on Deerfield who was wearing a white T-shirt, but the man denied being involved and jumped in a van and left the area, a police report says.

Police also later questioned a man on Deerfield in a white T-shirt, but no charges were filed.

Robbed by friend

YOUNGSTOWN

Police are looking for a 35-year-old city man believed to have robbed a friend at gunpoint of $700.

A 35-year-old Pennsylvania Avenue man told police he was visited Tuesday evening by a friend. The friend, he said, asked for a cold drink, but placed a gun to his back as he got up to get the drink.

The man told officers he and his friend struggled over the gun before he was struck in the head with the butt of the weapon. He said the man then went through his pockets, taking the money.

Bicyclist hit by car

liberty

Police said a 55-year-old bicyclist, who lives in Youngstown, was riding north on Fifth Avenue about 11:20 a.m. Wednesday when a maroon four-door Pontiac traveling in the same direction began honking continuously at him. When the two stopped for a red signal at Colonial Drive, the bicyclist told the motorist he also had a right to be on the road. When the light changed, the bicyclist went forward, and the car, which had been in a turning lane, followed and struck the back of the bike somewhere between 2491 and 2495 Fifth Avenue. The bicyclist sustained abrasions and bruises to his knees. Two witnesses provided the same Ohio license plate to police. The suspect is wanted for aggravated vehicular assault.

Preschool autism classroom to open

youngstown

A ceremonial ribbon-cutting is planned for 3 p.m. Friday at Heart Reach Ministries, Redondo Road, for the grand opening of its preschool autism classroom for children 2 Ω to 6 years old.

Heart Reach Ministries, a nonprofit Christian organization established in 1988 to serve promising youth, is branching out by opening an additional classroom to meet the needs of families from Mahoning and Trumbull counties impacted by children with autism.

Heart Reach was approved by the state in February 2010 to provide services under the leadership of Sherraine Dothard, day-care director; Tarone and Danetta Claybrook, occupational therapists; and Pastor Paris Yanno.