Crime & Courts

November 26, 2007

Police Blotter: incidents reported in Wilkes Barre

HAZLE TWP. – A one-car crash in Hazle Township resulted in the death of a Freeland man Saturday night.

According to state police at Hazleton, 44-year-old Russell Joseph Cherone was northbound on Route 940 when he lost control of his 2002 Chevy Blazer just before 8:30 p.m.

Police said the vehicle crossed the centerline and went off the west berm of the roadway. The driver’s side front end struck an embankment, and the SUV went north off the roadway. The Blazer rolled onto its roof and back onto the road, spinning before rolling onto its wheels. Cherone was ejected from the driver’s-side window. He was not wearing a seatbelt.

Cherone was pronounced dead on the scene by Luzerne County Deputy Coroner Gerald D. Jones Jr. Hazle Township Fire Co. and Freeland Ambulance assisted at the scene.

An investigation is continuing.

WILKES-BARRE – A Wilkes-Barre man is in stable condition at Lehigh Valley Hospital after a fire at his apartment on Welles Street on Thursday.

A hospital spokeswoman said Paul Yokavonis, 56, was in stable condition Sunday night in the hospital’s burn unit. Yokavonis was taken there on Thursday for further treatment to his wounds after originally being transported to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital after the fire.

Yokavonis was found unconscious on the second floor of the triple-block apartment building after the fire started on Thanksgiving Day. Also displaced were 10 other residents, who were helped by the Wyoming Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross.

The fire is still under investigation.

FOSTER TWP. – A man was rescued Sunday afternoon on Caplo’s Road in the Sandy Valley area after he suffered severe injuries as the result of a fall.

Foster Township firefighters got the call just before 3 p.m. of a 37-year-old man who had been preparing a hunting spot within the Baran Acres Hunting Club for the beginning of deer season.

Fearnots Volunteer Fire Co. Assistant Chief William J. Feissner said the victim suffered a severe knee injury and was unable to walk. He was stabilized by the White Haven Paramedic Unit and transported to a Wilkes-Barre area hospital. The victim’s name was not released.

WILKES-BARRE – Police reported the following unrelated incidents:

• Adam Knight, 28, of Beaumont Street, reported to police that he was robbed at gunpoint just before midnight Saturday at 400 Kidder St. No other information was available from police.

• Eric Saunders reported to police that he was hit in the face with a brick after an argument escalated on Sunday at Abbott and Hazle streets. Saunders was treated at the Wilkes-Barre General Hospital for injuries and released. The incident is under investigation.

• A complainant reported to police on Saturday morning that Jeremy Lispi, 28, of Plains Township, violated the conditions of a protection for abuse order by making several phone calls to her without invitation or authorization. Indirect contempt charges were filed against Lispi.

• Joann Resto, 29, of Nanticoke, was arrested on charges of resisting arrest and disorderly conduct after entering the Pitcher’s Mound bar on Blackman Street while allegedly acting unruly. When police arrived, she refused to stop and resisted arrest.

• Robyn Baylor reported to police that Norman Bordley, 43, struck her in the head with his fist while at Pizza Fellas restaurant at 395 S. Main St. on Saturday evening. A citation was filed against Bordley.

• Matthew Page, of Barney Street, reported to police that items were stolen from his car while it was parked at 188 N. Washington St. on Saturday night. Austina Giamber, 29, of Hanover Township, also reported to police someone stole items from her vehicle while parked at the same location.

•Justin Fedak, of Nanticoke, reported that someone shattered the windshield of his vehicle while it was parked at 650 S. Main St. around 2 a.m. Sunday. Adam Brojakowski of Plains Township and John Williams of Plymouth also reported that the windshields of their vehicles were smashed while they were parked at the same location. In addition, Megan Rowlands, of Trucksville, reported someone stole items from her vehicle while parked at the location.

PLYMOUTH TWP. – Police arrested Brian Evans, 58, of Houseman Street, on charges of simple assault after he allegedly threw a coffee mug at his wife, Violet Evans, 79, which caused her eye to swell and turn black and blue.

Brian Evans was arrested and arraigned by District Judge William Amesbury and taken to the Luzerne County Correctional Facility for lack of $5,000 bail.

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