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Theft charges filed against city worker
Jeffrey Campana has not yet been taken into custody
By Joe Gorman
YOUNGSTOWN
Felony theft warrants were filed Friday in municipal court against a city waste-water department worker who is a suspect in the theft of about 30 steel road plates from the department while he was on duty.
Jeffrey Campana, 40, is accused of taking the plates while he was on duty.
A police report said the plates have gone missing from October until late last month. They are valued at $1,000 apiece.
The plates, large pieces put over work areas during road construction, were then taken to a Wilson Avenue scrap yard to be sold.
The employee has not yet been taken into custody.
Charges of theft in office, a third-degree felony, as well as fourth-degree felony charges of theft and unauthorized use of property were filed against Campana.
Police were called March 23 by Paul Joseph, an assistant superintendent at the plant, who told an officer that the plates were being taken since October and could only be moved with special equipment.
Reports said that Joseph told police he received information that Campana had taken the plates but he refused to tell the officer who gave him the information, other than to say he thought it was “good information.”
The department has the type of equipment that can load and unload the plates and Joseph told the officer that Campana was able to operate that equipment.
The report said that Campana had been in a drug treatment program recently.
After the report was made, the case was turned over to Patrolman Dave Santangelo, who handles scrap investigations for the department, who then filed the charges Friday.