Wednesday, February 24, 2010
YOUNGSTOWN — Police said they arrested three people in the theft of copper pipe from a Lenox Avenue house when the trio returned to the scene of the crime.
Police were called to investigate a suspicious white van sitting in the 3300 block of Lenox around 10 p.m. Sunday. Neighbors told police they saw two men run from a vacant house in the 3400 block and get into the van and that a third person had been waiting in the vehicle.
As police were taking statements, the van returned to the area and police stopped it at Lenox and Comely Avenue, finding two men and a woman and some cut copper pipe inside.
A check of the vacant house showed it had been broken into and copper pipes taken from the basement, police said, adding that tracks in the snow around the house matched the tread on the shoes worn by one of the van’s occupants.
They arrested Charles Lantz II, 18, of Struthers, and Gregory Bass, 23, of Youngstown, on charges of breaking and entering and unauthorized removal of property.
The woman, Kayla D. Dempsey, 20, of Austintown, was arrested on complicity on both of those charges.
Police said Bass was also wanted on warrants for failure to appear in court on forgery and theft charges as well as warrants for misuse of credit cards, possession of heroin and petty theft. Dempsey was also wanted on warrants for theft, forgery, vandalism and misuse of credit cards, police said.
Bass and Dempsey remained in Mahoning County jail Tuesday night. Lantz was free on bond.