Drug raids net six arrests in the city

By DOUG LIVINGSTON

TheNewsOutlet.org

YOUNGSTOWN

Drug raids by the Youngstown Police Department’s vice squad on the South and North sides resulted in six arrests — two of them teenagers — and the confiscation of several illegal drugs and firearms.

An infant found in the South Side home was taken to Akron Children’s Hospital in Boardman for observation.

The arrests were made Thursday afternoon and evening.

Police officers first were sent to an East Florida Avenue home with a search warrant at 5 p.m.

According to a report, officers forced open the rear door after several attempts at knocking and identifying themselves. Brandon Perry, 18, met police upon entry and was arrested after attempting to run away.

Officers also arrested a 16-year-old who had come down from the second floor. He was turned over to authorities at the Martin P. Joyce Juvenile Justice Center.

In a bedroom, officers found Dante Perry, 18, his 1-year-old son and a 14-year-old boy. They arrested Dante Perry and the teenager, with the teen taken to the juvenile justice center.

According to the police report, officers found the baby boy to be unresponsive and generally lethargic. Police said they found three narcoticlike pain-reliever pills, split in half and placed near the child. The child and a sample of the drug were taken to Akron Children’s Hospital.

While police were at the scene, the homeowner, 45-year-old Charlotte Perry, returned. Several officers had spoken with her about weapons, narcotics and fugitive complaints in the past, according to the report.

Police said they found five packages of suspected crack cocaine, two loaded 9mm pistols and several rounds of ammunition in three separate locations throughout the house.

Police charged Brandon Perry with felony drug possession; Dante Perry with endangering children and possession of a dangerous drug; and Charlotte Perry with permitting drug abuse, a misdemeanor. Reports did not indicate their relationship.

The Perrys, who were arraigned Friday, were taken to the Mahoning County jail, where each is being held on a $10,000 bond. Their preliminary hearings are set for Thursday in municipal court.

The teenage boys had a hearing in juvenile court Friday. Each is charged with a felony count of drug possession. Police say they were released on house arrest pending a second court appearance.

At 6:51 p.m. the vice squad uncovered several suspected drugs, ammunition and a firearm while executing a search warrant at a North Side home.

Police knocked several times on the door at a home in the 700 block of Alameda Avenue before forcing their way in, according to police.

Inside, police found Michael Moore Sr., 37, sitting in the living room. Police said they found four bags of suspected heroin, one bag of suspected crack cocaine, one 9mm pistol, assorted pistol magazines, a bulletproof vest, a box of assorted ammunition and a suspected crack pipe.

Moore was charged with permitting drug abuse and also had three previous warrants for trafficking in cocaine.

He was arraigned Friday and is in jail on a $10,000 bond. His preliminary hearing is set for July 29.

Police said three other men and one woman were at the home at the time of the raid. Police had not released information on any charges or arrests for them as of Friday.

The NewsOutlet is a joint media venture by student and professional journalists and is a collaboration of Youngstown State University, WYSU radio and The Vindicator.