Victims of fatal Niles break-in targeted, acting police chief says

Staff report

NILES

The crime that led to the death of a Hiram Street woman late Thursday was not a random act, police said.

Capt. Jay Holland, acting city police chief, said whoever was at the home of Arlene Frasca, 74, and her husband, Angelo, in the 1600 block of Hiram Street was looking for something particular.

Holland said he did not want to say what they were looking for or if they managed to take anything, saying he did not want to compromise the investigation.

“It wasn’t random,” Holland said Friday. “We have facts to believe this house was specifically targeted.”

Frasca worked 28 years for the Trumbull County clerk of courts office, both in the county courthouse in Warren and across the street in the auto title office in the county administration building.

She also sold real estate and was active in her church, Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Niles, and many social clubs.

“Arlene was my dear cousin,” said Virginia L. Merlo, who worked with her cousin at the title office for several months just before Frasca retired in 2002. “It came as just a shock.”

“She was just a lot of fun to be around and upbeat,” Merlo said.

Frasca was interviewed for an article about the Warren Italian-American Heritage Festival in 2004, saying she attended the festival every year.

“It’s the highlight of the year,” she said. “Especially when you speak Italian.”

Her grandmother came to the United States from Viesta Forge in Italy to make a home for her family, she said.

“My favorite part of the festival is seeing all my old friends,” she said. “I like listening to the music and speaking Italian with my grandmother’s friends.”

Frasca’s death is the ninth homicide in Trumbull County this year.

It’s also the second homicide in Niles in 19 months to involve a senior citizen.

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