Friday, February 13, 2015
POLAND
Police say they have new information to connect various car break-in cases in Poland Township, Poland village and Boardman Township over the past several years.
Police will detail that information today at a 9 a.m. news conference with all three departments at the Poland Township Administration Building.
The new evidence could help police with unsolved break-in cases that date back as far as 2009, said Brian Goodin, Poland Township police chief.
Poland village Chief Russell Beatty Jr. says there “definitely” is a connection between some of the unsolved incidents, and that his department has DNA evidence that might help make the connection.
Car break-ins plagued all three communities and surrounding areas last summer and fall.
Dozens of police reports detailed instances where people broke into vehicles, usually unlocked ones, and took valuables. At the time, police warned residents to lock their vehicles and take their valuables inside.
In October, an investigation by the Mahoning Valley Law Enforcement Task Force led to the indictment of 17 people suspected of being involved in car break-ins and burglaries in the Poland and Springfield area over the summer.
Investigators in that case, and in other instances, said the thefts usually are related to the drug trade. Suspects often will sell the stolen items for cash to buy drugs or trade them for drugs, police said.
Getting the new information out to the public could help the investigation, Goodin said.