Neighbors mourn loss of generous woman; accused teen may be tried as adult

WARREN

A neighbor cried when talking about Marie Belcastro, the 94-year-old woman found dead in her home Tuesday.

“She never did nothing to anybody,” Charles Winwood said.

Now, Jacob Larosa, 15, may be tried as an adult in her death.

Trumbull County Prosecutor Dennis Watkins said Wednesday authorities believe Larosa killed Belcastro on Tuesday afternoon at her Cherry Street home in Niles.

If Larosa is tried as an adult, it will be the first time in many years that a county juvenile has had his or her case handled in the adult system.

In 1985, 17-year-old Timothy Combs, the accomplice of Danny Lee Hill in the murder of Raymond Fife, was tried as an adult. He was sentenced to life in prison.

Juveniles in Ohio are not eligible for the death penalty.

Watkins said Chris Becker and Stanley Elkins, assistant county prosecutors, will handle the matter in juvenile court.

A judge in the juvenile system will make the decision on whether Larosa will be tried as an adult, Becker said.

Larosa and his family lived a few houses away from Belcastro on Lafayette Avenue.

Read more about the case in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.