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YPD: Mother/daughter set up home invasion, father/son participate
VINDICATOR EXCLUSIVE
By Joe Gorman
YOUNGSTOWN
To call the home invasion and beating of a 73-year-old East Midlothian Boulevard man a family affair would not be a stretch.
Detective Sgt. Mike Lambert said Alyssa Dimuzio, 21, and her mother, Michelle Dimuzio, 42, who lived with the victim, helped plan the theft last month of a gun safe the victim had in his home.
One of the men who took part in the crime, John Wagner, 31, enlisted his father, Russell Wagner, 58, to be the getaway driver.
As of Thursday, all four, along with a fifth person, Justin Pitts, 31, were in custody in three jails in two states.
Police were called to the East Midlothian Boulevard home just after 1 p.m. Jan. 23 and found the homeowner suffering from a head injury. Reports said two men managed to get inside, beat him and take his gun safe with nine guns inside and his pickup truck.
Some of the missing guns have been recovered.
The homeowner was taken to St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital and has since recovered.
John Wagner was taken into custody Wednesday and booked into the Mahoning County jail. He is expected to be arraigned in municipal court today.
His father was arrested Thursday morning by police in Darlington, Pa., and is being held there until he can be returned to Youngstown.
Alyssa Dimuzio was arraigned in municipal court earlier this week after she was transferred from the Columbiana County jail, where she faces charges in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court on two separate cases of felony trafficking in drugs and two counts of child endangering and possession of drugs. Court records show she is set to enter pleas in both cases on March 1.
Her mother is in the Columbiana County jail also, where she faces two misdemeanor counts in Columbiana County Municipal Court of child endangering. She also is awaiting transfer to Youngstown.
Pitts was arraigned last week shortly after he was taken into custody and placed in the Mahoning County lockup.
He pleaded guilty in early 2017 in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court to three counts of third-degree felony burglary, a fifth-degree felony charge of possession of criminal tools and misdemeanor counts of tampering with a coin machine and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was placed on four years’ probation.
John Wagner and his father also both face misdemeanor charges in Columbiana County Municipal Court of criminal trespass that were filed by Washingtonville police in September. Court records do not specify if they are charged in the same incident or separate ones.