Pair accused in Kentucky robbery

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GMI

By Amanda Iacone and Kara Hull

The Journal Gazette

A Butler woman and a Kentucky man who police believe robbed a man at gunpoint Tuesday in the Bluegrass State were arrested Wednesday in Auburn.

Shannon D. Buckler, 21, of Butler, and Jason H. Mullins, 23, of Paris, Ky., are accused of entering the home of a 70-year-old Richmond, Ky., man Tuesday and stealing items, including several firearms, while holding the victim at gunpoint. The two suspects bound the victim and stole his vehicle, driving it to DeKalb County, police in Kentucky said.

Buckler and Mullins were arrested by Auburn police officers Wednesday in front of a Kroger store on West Seventh Street as they waited for a Western Union money transfer to be completed.

A detective with the Kentucky State Police contacted the Auburn Police Department to alert them to the possibility that the fugitives were in the area.

Police located the stolen vehicle outside an Auburn home and a search of the home revealed what police believe were the stolen items from Kentucky and some items they believe could have been from a second burglary.

Buckler and Mullins are being held at the DeKalb County Jail on local charges of receiving stolen property, a felony, and a Kentucky warrant for robbery in the first degree. They are both being held without bond because of the warrant.

Inmate in Noble flees, arrested in Arkansas

Police in Fayetteville, Ark., on Wednesday arrested a Noble County man who fled the area over the holiday weekend when he was given a six-hour pass from the Noble County Work Release Center to do laundry, police said.

Alexander D. Kupczynski, 28, whose last known local address was in North Webster, was arrested at 12:44 p.m. Wednesday in Fayetteville at his wife’s house, Noble County Sheriff Gary D. Leatherman said. Kupczynski is originally from Fayetteville, Leatherman said.

After Kupczynski didn’t return to the center Saturday, a warrant was issued for his arrest, charging him with failure to return to lawful detention, a Class D felony punishable by up to three years in prison. He was serving a two-year sentence for not paying child support, the Noble County Sheriff’s Department said.

Kupczynski is being held at the Washington County Jail in Arkansas on misdemeanor charges of failure to appear and possible drug-related charges, the statement said. He will be brought back to Noble County after charges in Fayetteville have been settled, Leatherman said.

Home detainee charged with escaping penalty

A Fort Wayne man was formally charged Friday with escaping from home detention.

According to a probable cause affidavit, Tyrie D. Holley, 20, of the 2500 block of Warsaw Street, was placed on home detention with an anklet transmitter on May 5. On June 4, Community Corrections staff received an open strap alert from Holley’s transmitter.

Community Corrections officers went to Holley’s home and talked to his mother. She had his ankle strap packed in a box and told the officers that her son had left, court records said.

His mother said that Holley was under a lot of pressure because he could not pay his home detention fees and was supposed to appear in court on another matter. Holley told his mother that he couldn’t take it anymore, cut his ankle strap and left, court documents said.

Holley was convicted of dealing in cocaine or a narcotic drug in 2003, according to the Indiana Department of Corrections. In late April, he was booked into the Allen County Lockup on a charge of violating probation.

Marijuana plants found during theft inquiry

Fort Wayne police found about 15 marijuana plants in an Andrew Street home Sunday, police said.

Officers were initially called to Wells and Archer streets for a report that a man was seen breaking into a vending machine. A witness saw the man put change into his pocket and ride toward a home at 2011 Andrew St. on a moped, a police report said.

When police knocked on the door at 2011 Andrew St., the man who answered tried to slam the door shut. Police struggled with the man but were able to put handcuffs on him. Other people inside the home told police that the man driving the moped ran through the house and out the back door, the report said.

Police walked through the home looking for the moped driver, and in the basement they found a crack pipe and could smell marijuana. In the corner of the basement they found the 15 marijuana plants under florescent lights, the report said.

Police also found change stacked in piles in the kitchen and some powdered cocaine in a bedroom. The marijuana weighed about 1.8 pounds, the report said.

The man who answered the door was identified as Thomas Chambers, 60, of the 2000 block of Andrew Street, the report said.

Chambers was arrested on charges of possession of marijuana, reckless possession of paraphernalia, resisting law enforcement and maintaining a common nuisance, the report said.

Police caught the moped rider on Sherman Boulevard. He was taken to police headquarters for questioning, the report said.

Fort Wayne Neighborhood Code condemned and boarded up the house, the report said.

Wabash police identify moped crash victim

Police in Wabash County have identified the moped driver injured during a crash Tuesday.

Dennis L. Ridenour, 33, of Silver Lake, was taken to a Fort Wayne hospital after the crash along Singer Road north of County Road 1100 North, a sheriff’s department report said.

Police did not know the man’s name until about 4 p.m. Wednesday when a local resident called the sheriff’s department with a tip.

Physical identification was later conducted at Parkview Hospital, the report said.

Ridenour was in serious condition Tuesday. An updated condition was not available Wednesday.