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Niles and Girard police charge 2 in robberies
By Ed Runyan
Niles and Girard police have charged a 17-year-old Niles boy and a 21-year-old Cortland man in connection with two armed robberies Monday night.
One of those robberies took place at an ATM at Giant Eagle supermarket on Vienna Avenue in Niles.
Police arrested both suspects Tuesday after an investigation that was aided by the discovery of one of the suspect’s cellphone near one of the robberies.
Girard police said a 26-year-old Girard man was visiting a home on Hazel Street when a young man approached him in the yard and said, “What you have?” at 7:59 p.m.
The robber showed the victim a gun, struck him in the head with it, then fled with the victim’s cellphone and cigarettes. The victim saw the robber get into a two-door vehicle.
The victim said he was talking to neighbors later that night, and they showed him a cellphone they found on the ground nearby.
The victim called a couple of the phone numbers in the phone and talked to a female who identified the phone’s owner. The victim took the phone and information to the Girard Police Department at about 1 a.m. Tuesday.
Later Tuesday, Girard police learned a similar robbery with a similar suspect occurred at the Niles Giant Eagle at about 8:30 p.m. Monday.
That crime involved a woman who said a man ordered her to give up her money while she was using the ATM. The woman handed him money and a personal check.
The investigation Girard and Niles police conducted led them to Christopher Graham, 17, of Bellaire Court, Niles, whose house was searched, leading to the recovery of the cellphone stolen in Girard. Police also recovered the gun used in the crimes, they said.
Matthew J. Vargo, 21, of Evon Circle, Cortland, and a female also showed up at Graham’s home while investigators were there, and Vargo admitted to being with Graham during the robberies and giving Graham a gun to use during the crimes, Girard police said.
Police arrested Graham later that day at Niles McKinley High School and charged him with two counts of aggravated robbery and took him to the Trumbull County Juvenile Justice Center.
Vargo was arraigned on Wednesday in Niles Municipal Court on one count of aggravated robbery. He was released after posting a $10,000 personal recognizance bond, meaning he didn’t have to pay anything.