The Portage County Drug Task Force was busy this week as a number of Ravenna residents were taken into custody in connection with two separate drug busts.
NewsChannel 5 reports Tuesday, the Task Force arrested 29-year-old Jonathan Casteel for allegedly trafficking marijuana and endangering children. He was booked into the Portage County Jail.
Portage County Sheriff David Doak said the arrest came after a five month investigation into the alleged drug trafficking. Task Force Agents said they discovered an undetermined amount of marijuana and cash.
On Thursday, the Portage County Drug Task Force arrested eight more people in Ravenna after authorities said they received multiple complaints about drug activity on Plum Way. Crack cocaine and powder were both recovered from the home.
45-year old Antoinetta Latimer is facing charges of possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a controlled substance.
Also booked into the Portage County Jail on cocaine possession charges were 26-year old Jerome Latimer, 59-year old Anthony Kirklin, 20-year old Xavier Jones, 18-year old Quenton Burrell Jr, 29-year old Joshua Hixon, 22-year old Jamiran Mack, and 24-year Deanglo Frost.
Additional evidence will be presented to the Portage County Prosecutor's Office by Task Force Agents and the Grand Jury could be seeking additional charges in both cases.
On the Web: www.newsnet5.com
Authorities have determined 'ineffective brakes' caused the driver of a dump truck to crash into the Cuyahoga River last week.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol Motor Carrier Enforcement Unit conducted the inspection on the dump truck driven by Christopher Burgess, 41, of Ravenna, and found that he was unable to stop after his brakes failed.
Burgess died in the crash after police and eyewitnesses said he sacrificed his own life to avoid other motorists and pedestrians as he was traveling down Portage Trail near Akron-Peninsula Road on July 5.
His vehicle nearly missed the Valley Shopping Center before hitting a tree and then coming to a stop in the Cuyahoga River.
Previous Coverage:
Rubbermaid will be hosting a job fair today from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Portage County Administration Building on South Meridian Street in Ravenna.
The company will be interviewing for a list of available jobs including maintainance and mold technicians, indirect buyers and engineers.
Earlier this year, Rubbermaid announced the addition of nearly 140 full-time jobs to it's operations in Mogadore, part of a $25 million dollar investment.
For more information visit: www.ohiomeansjobs.com & www.jobs.newellrubbermaid.com
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Some regions of Portage County experienced flooding during Monday night's heavy showers.
WKYC Channel 3 News reports water as deep as three feet in Ravenna Township forced Portage County Sheriffs to advise residents to evacuate if necessary.
VIDEO See WKYC's report from Brady Lake
Brady Lake Road is no stranger to flooding trouble and last night a woman traveling on Brady Lake hydroplaned into a tree on Woodlawn Avenue.
She had to be rescued from her vehicle.
On the web: www.wkyc.com
Ravenna police are investigating a high-speed car chase that led to a fatal accident Tuesday night.
Police started an investigation around 9:30 p.m. after a woman told officers that she was assaulted by her husband.
Officers attempted to stop a vehicle matching the description of the husband's Chevy truck near South Chestnut St. and Lake Avenue.
Police say David Johnson, 32, of Diamond led police on a high-speed car chase before crashing through a guard rail barrier blocking the road on Cableline Road near state route 14.
Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol and the Ravenna Police Department are investigating the crash.
Anyone with additional information about the incident should contact the City of Ravenna Police Department at 330-296-6486.
A woman faces felony charges for allegedly taking a wallet and beating the woman it belonged to.
The Portage County Sheriff's Office reports 24-year-old Nichole M. Buffington of Ravenna was arrested on felony robbery charges-- a third degree felony.
A 67-year old female vicitm told deputies that a friend of a family member came to her home Tuesday.
Authorities say Bluffington entered the residence in the Pine Gate Trailer Park, off of Cleveland Road in Ravenna.
That's when they believe she picked up the woman's wallet and an alleged assault left the victim on the floor.
Bluffington drove off, but she was later nabbed by deputies.
A man died Saturday evening in a Ravenna house fire.
WEWS NewsChannel 5 reports that firefighters were called to the home on South Meridian Street at just before 9 PM Saturday.
Fire investigators say 51 year-old Frank Jones was transported to Robinson Memorial Hospital, where he died as a result of injuries sustained in the fire.
An autopsy will determine the cause of death. That autopsy is scheduled for Monday.
The fire triggered mutual aid responses from four nearby fire departments - Kent, Mantua, Rootstown and Charlestown.
There are no other reports of injuries, and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
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On the Web: WEWS NewsChannel 5, www.newsnet5.com
Portage County Sheriff David W. Doak announced today the arrest of 29 year-old Thomas L. Ingram Jr. of Ravenna. The arrest came as a result of an anonymous tip made to the Portage County Sheriffs Office that came because an earlier press release.
Sheriff Doak reports that over the last several weeks there has been an increase in the reports received by the Sheriffs Office concerning thefts from vehicles.
This has been primarily in the Ravenna Township area centered around the Lakewood / SR 59 area.
During the investigations of these thefts, Ingram was identified as being one of the primary subjects involved. Ingram is a known abuser of illegal drugs and it is believed Ingram was using the proceeds from the thefts to fund his drug habit.
The investigation into these thefts is ongoing with additional charges expected to be filed and additional suspects to be charged.
Some of the stolen items have been recovered and the Detective Bureau is currently working on identifying the owners and will be in contact with them to return the property.
It was learned that Ingram was staying at a motel in Cuyahoga Falls. With the assistance of Cuyahoga Falls Police, Ingram was taken into custody without incident.
Ingram will be transported to the Portage County Jail where he will be served with his warrants. Ingram will be held without bond until his initial court appearance to be held at 1:15 PM on Monday, October 17, 2011 at the Ravenna Courthouse.
A Ravenna Township man will be spending six years in prison for the shooting of another man in the leg after holding him prisoner in April.
The Record Courier reports Thomas J. Crist, 31, was sentenced by Portage County Common Pleas Judge John Enlow. Crist pleaded guilty in July to kidnapping and assault.
Crist was allegedly high on bath salts during the shooting of Charles E. Sandli, 32, on April 12. Sandli escaped after soon after being shot.
Three children were removed from the house on S.R. 59 where the incident took place. They were not home during the shooting.
The children's mother, Jenny L. Kerrigan, 29, pleaded guilty on two counts of endangering children and will be sentenced on September 28 by Portage County Municipal Judge Barbara Oswick.
On the Web: www.recordpub.com
A man who pleaded guilty to a murder in Ravenna last year is expected to spend the rest of his life in prison.
Judge John Enlow of Portage County Common Pleas Court ruled that Lawrence Burfitt Jr., 24, will be eligible for parole after serving 25 years.
The Record-Courier says during his sentencing Tuesday, Burfitt apologized for his actions.
Last October, Burfitt pleaded guilty to stabbing 38-year-old Clifford Cummings Jr. of Akron to death during a robbery inside an apartment on Cleveland Road in Ravenna in April of last year. The Portage County Prosecutor's Office dropped charges of aggravated robbery, aggravated burglary and four counts of kidnapping and ruled out the death penalty as a possible sentence.
On April 18, 2010, Burfitt and three other men forced their way into the apartment looking for money and drugs. In addition to the murder of Cummings, they also forced his girlfriend, Ericka Rouser, and two of her children into a closet.
Two accomplices, 22-year-old Jarmel Latimer and 19-year-old Damiyon Baxstrumn were sentenced to life in prison last month.
On the Web: Record-Courier
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