MOUNT VERNON — Fourteen indictments were handed down by a Knox County grand jury on May 3. Arraignments are scheduled for May 14 before Common Pleas Court Judge Otho Eyster.
According to Knox County Prosecutor John Thatcher, Christi D. Durfee, 23, Mansfield, was indicted for attempted robbery. On March 17, Durfee allegedly tried to steal a purse from a 75-year-old woman outside of a Mount Vernon shopping center. Durfee ran when a bystander intervened to help the woman. Cpl. Beth Marti, Mount Vernon Police Department, investigated the case.
Stephen E. DeShong, 23, Fredericktown, and Clinton W. Parker (aka Hess), 25, Mount Vernon, face theft and receiving stolen property charges for allegedly stealing a 42-inch television on March 20. Patrolman Matt Jones, MVPD, recovered the TV.
Ethan W. Bodemer, 20, Blacksburg, Va., is accused of aggravated possession of drugs. Thatcher said that on Sept. 19, 2009, Deputy David Merillat, Knox County Sheriff's Office, was called to a local college where Bodemer was allegedly found in possession of a plastic bag marked “salvia 60x” containing brown vegetation, two multicolored pipes with residue and two baggies of marijuana. A lab test later revealed that the baggie marked “salvia 60x” contained Salvinorin, a schedule I controlled substance. Bodemer was convicted of possessing drug paraphernalia and marijuana in September, according to Mount Vernon Municipal Court records.
Damien T. Wilburn, 31, Bainbridge, faces a six-count indictment containing charges of possessing criminal tools, breaking and entering, vandalism, aggravated theft, receiving stolen property and disrupting public services. On March 20, the Ross County man allegedly used bolt cutters and a pry bar to break into a cable company substation, where he stole equipment he later sold over the Internet. The value of the equipment exceeds $100,000, according to Thatcher.
Wilburn is charged with disrupting public services for knocking out cable television, Internet access and telephone services to over 4,000 Knox County residents on the day of the alleged break-in. Detective Sgt. Roger Brown, KCSO, investigated the case.
Corey A. Werfield, 19, (residence not listed) is charged with grand theft of a motor vehicle for allegedly stealing a Danville resident’s 2008 Ford pickup truck on March 22. Deputy Max Huffman, KCSO, recovered the stolen truck on April 2.
On July 20, 2009, Diana D. Thompson, 35, Mount Vernon, allegedly falsified an application for a duplicate motor vehicle title by claiming she lost the title to her 1997 Mercury. Thompson actually sold the vehicle a month earlier, according to Thatcher. After Thompson obtained the duplicate title, she sold the car again. The true owner of the car was hospitalized at the time and unaware of what Thompson was doing. Investigator Tim Hughes, Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles, investigated the tampering with official records case.
Connor T. Bennett, 19, Wilmington, N.C., faces burglary and attempted burglary charges. The night of April 11, Bennett allegedly entered the sunroom of a Gambier residence and then tried to enter the house through a kitchen door. Deputy Dennis Phillips, KCSO, responded to the resident’s 9-1-1 call and arrested Bennett. Bennett is also accused of underage consumption of alcohol and public intoxication, according to Municipal Court records.
Between March 13 and April 16, Chad A. Cardwell, 31, allegedly bounced 14 checks on his closed checking account. Thatcher said the checks exceed $5,000. Last July, Cardwell allegedly bounced a check for $424. Cardwell was indicted on a fourth-degree felony count and a first-degree misdemeanor count of passing bad checks. Detective Sgt. Jeff Jacobs, MVPD, and Deputy Tim Light, KCSO, investigated the case.
Cardwell is a fugitive with two outstanding felony warrants for his arrest. Anyone with information about his whereabouts is encouraged to contact the Knox County Sheriff's Office at 397-3333.
Jammie A. McDonald, 34, Mount Vernon, is accused of forgery for allegedly forging two signatures on loan documents in January. Detective Sgt. Jacobs handled the case.
Christopher D. Jackson, 38, (residence not listed) was indicted for possessing a stolen firearm. Thatcher said that on Jan. 4, Jackson allegedly sold a 50-caliber muzzleloader that was stolen from a Mount Vernon residence. Patrolman Lewis Qade and Detective Dave McElroy, MVPD, investigated the case.
Brad A. Bonham, 33, and Jamie S. Cremeans, 39, both of Mount Vernon, face charges of burglary, breaking and entering, possessing criminal tools and receiving stolen property for offenses allegedly committed between March 26 and April 10. Bonham and Cremeans allegedly stole scrap metal using a stolen 16-foot trailer.
They are accused of burglarizing a Gambier Road residence and of breaking and entering for trespassing on property, on Short Road and Marion Road, with the intent to commit a felony. Bonham and Cremeans allegedly used gloves, tin snips and pruning shears as criminal tools while stealing the scrap metal, according to Thatcher. Deputy Light investigated the case.
Ronald E. Hoeflich, 30, Mount Vernon, was indicted on charges of breaking and entering and tampering with a coin machine. Thatcher said that on March 27, Hoeflich allegedly broke into a Coshocton Avenue business, where he broke into candy machines to steal change. Detective Cpl. Matt Dailey and Sgt. Troy Glazier, MVPD, investigated the break-in and theft.
