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Hubbard man charged with stealing veteran’s grave markers
By ROBERT CONNELLY
AUSTINTOWN
A Trumbull County grand jury will hear the case against a Hubbard man accused of forging and signing a letter to sell about 23 pounds of bronze veteran plaques stolen from area cemeteries.
Township police arrested Seth Keyes, 36, of Hubbard, in February on three counts of felony forgery. Detective Sgt. Jordan Yacovone of Austintown police said they have a video recording of Keyes attempting to sell the bronze grave markers at Girard Recycling in November 2013.
Yacovone said Keyes gave a fictitious letter from the American Legion Post 301 in Austintown claiming he was allowed to scrap the markers.
The letter was signed by a person named Lawrence Preezy, who listed a title as memorial director. The post’s commander, however, confirmed the post had no such position and Preezy was not a person he knew.
Yacovone said Girard Recycling became suspicious because Keyes had called earlier asking what was needed to sell the grave markers. Yacovone said the owner of Girard Recycling called Girard police, and Keyes ran out with the plaques.
Yacovone said thefts of metal from abandoned homes is common, but, “memorial grave markers aren’t that common because they know there is a hassle to try to get them sold.”
Girard shifted the case to Austintown on Dec. 10 because they didn’t have the plaques and only had the forged letter.
Yacovone said it took township police some time to find Keyes because he is a known drug addict and was coming and going from various drug houses.
He was not indicted by a Mahoning County grand jury because the county prosecutor’s office said the case fell out of Austintown’s jurisdiction, Yacovone explained.
The Austintown detective plans to testify before the Trumbull grand jury when the case is called within a week or two.
Yacovone said no one has come forward to say a plaque is missing from a grave. Anyone who discovers that a plaque is missing can call Yacovone at 330-799-9721, or Gabe Wildman of the Trumbull County Prosecutor’s Office, 330-675-2426.