Boardman Township police arrest shoplifters at gunpoint
BOARDMAN TWP., Ohio -Jan 29 2019
Two people are facing charges after leading officers on a chase through the Shops at Boardman Park.
Police say 37-year-old Brandice Shaffer was caught on camera inside the Kohl’s store in Boardman shoplifting.
According to a report, Shaffer was seen exiting the store and getting into a maroon Jeep. Two police officers who happened to be working in the area took off on foot after Jeep, yelling for the driver to stop.
The report says the driver kept going, turning out of the parking lot onto Route 224.
However, a nearby patrol car found the Jeep and stopped them in front of Citizen’s Bank.
The report says the officer commanded the driver of the Jeep, identified as 60-year-old Mark Rohrbaugh, to put his hands out of the window.
Rohrbaugh allegedly responded by saying “I will, but not until you lower four f******* gun!”
Two other officers, including a Poland Village Police Department Officers, arrived and held the car at gunpoint, according to the report.
Police say Rohrbaugh eventually got out of the Jeep but refused to comply with orders asking him to keep his hands out of his pockets, to face away from officers, and to get on his knees.
The report says officers took Rohrbaugh on the ground and tried to handcuff him, however, he reportedly put his hands underneath his body so the cops couldn’t get to it.
Officers say they finally placed Rohrbaugh under arrest and put him in a cruiser.
Shaffer was then brought out of the Jeep, at which point she allegedly admitted to officers that she put a $55 Nike hoodie in her purse inside of Kohl’s, but gave it back when she was stopped by a loss prevention officer.
Both Shaffer and Rohrbaugh were taken to the Mahoning County Jail on criminal charges.
Shaffer faces charges of theft, resisting arrest, obstructing official business, and criminal trespass. She was also wanted on a warrant out of Trumbull Couty for alleged identity fraud.
Rohrbaugh, meanwhile, was charged with complicity, obstructing official business, failure to comply, and resisting arrest.
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