Poland Township police arrest suspects in check fraud scheme

Staff report

POLAND

Four men suspected of participating in a fraudulent check-cashing scheme at numerous PNC banks in Pennsylvania and Ohio were arrested by township police Thursday.

In the Mahoning County jail Friday were: Grantley Lawrence, 23, on a complicity charge; Lamone Lawrence, 29, on a complicity charge; Juzan Spence, 22, on a complicity charge; and Mario Vega, 24, on charges of obstructing official business, complicity, identity fraud, possessing criminal tools, forgery and money laundering, according to jail records.

Township Police Chief Brian Goodin said officers received a tip from another area PNC Bank branch about the suspects.

“Sure enough, they came here,” he said.

Township officers arrested the four men at the PNC branch on Center Road in the township. Goodin said an officer caught Vega while he was inside the bank. Goodin and another police officer caught the other suspects in what he described as their getaway vehicle.

The men, who are from the New York City area, are suspected of fraudulently using the identities of PNC customers to cash checks at various locations in Pennsylvania and Ohio.

Goodin said police recovered “a large sum of money” as well as several ID cards from the suspects.

Township police have notified other police departments about the arrest, and the suspects could face additional charges if they are tied to other incidents.