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Warren man faces charges in break-in at mom’s house
By Ed Runyan
WARREN
A city man who says he’s a drug addict was arraigned Friday on a charge of breaking into his mother’s house Thursday after being banned from the house for stealing.
Phillip P. Shimko, 21, is in the Trumbull County jail without eligibility to make bond on the charge involving his mother’s house in the 1500 block of Sheridan Avenue Northeast. Judge Terry Ivanchak entered a not-guilty plea for Shimko on burglary.
He also entered a not-guilty plea to felony escape, which resulted from Shimko trying to escape from the interview room at the Warren Police Department Thursday after his arrest. While monitoring him on a video feed, officers saw him stand on a chair and tamper with ceiling tiles.
Police were called to Shimko’s mother’s house at 9:10 a.m. Thursday for someone crawling into the home through a window. Police found Shimko inside. When his mother arrived, she said Shimko had been banned from the house because he had been stealing from her to support his drug addiction.
Police are also investigating whether Shimko should be charged after allegations this week that he stole from two elderly men with whom he lived.
Tuesday, police were called to a house in the 1600 block of Sheridan, where a man, 68, said he heard someone in his house when he returned home at 5:30 p.m. He said he then saw Shimko leaving the house through a basement window.
The man said he had been letting Shimko stay with him. Police recovered a cellphone in the house that belonged to Shimko, and the homeowner discovered a handgun missing from the home, a police report says.
Sunday evening, police were called to a home on Irene Avenue Northeast because the sister of the homeowner, a man, 81, was concerned about Shimko and another male living there with her brother.
The woman, 82, who said she has power of attorney for the man because of his mental difficulties, said Shimko had lived with her brother since December.
She also said items were missing from the home, including five firearms, credit cards and a coin collection.
Jan. 27, police were called to an Elm Road bank, where the elderly man from Irene Avenue had been left by Shimko and another male after an unsuccessful attempt to withdraw money from the man’s bank account. A bank employee said the bank deactivated his account after multiple withdrawals in the days prior.
The two young men had taken the man to various bank branches and had him withdraw $200 Jan. 24 and $500 Jan. 26, the employee said. In all, the man had withdrawn about $11,000 from his bank account over the previous couple months, the employee said. Another bank employee told police the young men had also taken the man to several cash advance businesses and had him take out loans of as much as $1,000 or more.
The man’s sister told police Jan. 27 that items had come up missing from the man’s home since Shimko and the other man, 22, had been living with him, including a lawnmower and snowblower.
Shimko arrived at the bank while police were there, and he admitted to having an opiate addiction and admitted he does ask the man for money, but he denied stealing from him.
Sgt. Joe Kistler, a supervisor in the detective division of the Warren Police Department, said a detective is investigating whether charges should be filed for the large amounts of money the young men have convinced the elderly man to give them, but such cases are difficult to prosecute.
“Here’s the problem. You can give your money to whoever you want to. Unless the probate court declares you incompetent to handle your finances, it’s more of a moral crime,” Kistler said.
Adult Protective Services, a division of the Trumbull County Department of Job and Family Services, investigates allegations of abuse, neglect and exploitation among people age 60 and older. People can call anonymously regarding allegations. The agency received 105 referrals in the last quarter of 2016, 27 of them regarding exploitation, said Kim Barrell, a program administrator for JFS.
Call 330-392-3248 24 hours per day.