Hideaway Lounge closed

NILES

The Hideaway Lounge on Youngstown Road, where a woman was shot to death outside Feb. 24 as she tried to drive away, is closed, apparently because it has not had a valid liquor license since Oct. 1.

During the investigation of the shooting death of Britney Mazanec, 33, Niles Police Department researched the Hideaway’s liquor license and discovered the license expired almost six months earlier.

In addition, Niles police on Thursday charged Michael R. Watson, 40, of Orchard Court in Warren with three counts of failing to have a valid liquor permit. Tavern operator Watson leases the building housing the Hideaway and the tavern’s liquor license from the permit holder, police said.

Watson will be arraigned at 8:30 a.m. Thursday in Niles Municipal Court. He was charged with one count for each of the three times the police department was called to the tavern between Oct. 1 and Feb. 24.