Man charged with stealing roto tiller from Howland store, fleeing from police

Staff report

WARREN

Christopher M. Cretella, 56, of Florencedale Avenue in Youngstown and East Broadway Street in Girard, is in the Trumbull County jail in lieu of $275,000 bond after being arraigned Monday on felonious assault and aggravated burglary/robbery charges related to a theft at Tractor Supply on Elm Road.

Not-guilty pleas were entered in Warren Municipal Court for Cretella on the two felony charges; he pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor driving under suspension and a traffic-light violation.

A Howland police officer was in an unmarked police car in the Tractor Supply parking lot at 6:10 a.m. Saturday when he heard the store’s security alarm go off and saw a man putting a piece of equipment into the back of his car. The officer later found a cable that secured the equipment to the property been cut.

The officer drove at the car, and the driver drove toward the police car, striking the police car in the front fender, then backed up and struck the police car again and drove off.

The officer pursued and saw handlebars sticking out of the back of the car. The handlebars were contacting the road and causing sparks, the officer said.

The pursuit continued onto the state Route 82 bypass east at about 90 miles per hour and into Vienna Township, where the officer lost sight of the car on Smith Stewart Road.

At 7:10 a.m., the Ohio State Highway Patrol found a vehicle matching the description given by Howland police at Collar Price Road in Brookfield Township and arrested Cretella inside it.

The Howland officer identified Cretella by his appearance and car, including damage to its front end, police said.

Vienna police later notified Howland police that a Vienna officer had talked to a repairman who had found a new rototiller along side Scoville North at 6:45 a.m.

The repairman was contacted later, and he brought the equipment to the Howland Police Department.