Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN — Leonard L. Sykes, 49, whose address is the Mahoning County jail, was indicted Thursday on three counts of rape and single counts of importuning and disseminating matter harmful to juveniles.

If convicted of any of the alleged rapes, Sykes could get a life prison sentence. The offenses are alleged to have taken place in Youngstown and involved one alleged victim, prosecutors say.

The date of the offenses is alleged to have been Aug. 14, according to information contained in Youngstown Municipal Court records. Sykes was arraigned in municipal court Sept. 14, and the case was bound over to a county grand jury during a Sept. 21 hearing.

The case was investigated by the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office, court records show.

While in municipal court, he was ordered to have no contact with a specific child. Bond was set at $50,000 in the case. Sykes has been in the Mahoning County jail since Sept. 9.

In another case, an Oregon Avenue man who already faces 11 counts dealing with domestic violence incidents against a pregnant woman, was indicted on 10 more counts dealing with his behavior in Youngstown Municipal Court in August, in which he is accused of threatening several people.

Kyle Taylor, 36, was charged with five counts of third-degree intimidation, four counts of fifth-degree harassment with a bodily substance and one count misdemeanor criminal damaging.

Taylor will be arraigned Tuesday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court.

In August, Taylor was given a 30-day jail sentence on a contempt of court charge by Municipal Judge Renee DiSalvo after he was accused of threatening people, including the victim, during an arraignment in a domestic violence case.

The original case stems from alleged attacks on a pregnant woman. The victim told police officers that Taylor hit her several times on Aug. 3 because she did not have any money for drugs, according to a report.

Mahoning County jail records show Taylor is being held without bond.

Also, Lamont A. Thomas, 25, of St. Louis Avenue, was indicted on a charge of cruelty to companion animals. Humane agents in September found the remains of a dog chained in the yard of his home.

Arraignments are also scheduled Tuesday for others indicted by the grand jury:

• Mark L. Rosine, 38, Webb Road, Austintown, fentanyl related compound possession;

• Mohammed A. Albishri, 34, Willow Drive, Boardman, four counts of aggravated drug trafficking, one count of aggravated drug possession, one count of marijuana possession and one count of illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia, all with a forfeiture specification;

• Dwain C. Witherspoon, 32, Euclid, aggravated drug possession;

• Shawn D. Stevens, 18, Pointview Avenue, grand theft of a motor vehicle and petty theft;

• Zikome L. Franklin, 37, Rutledge Drive, cocaine possession;

• Christian M. Pasco, 24, Cavalcade Drive, Austintown, improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle, operating a motor vehicle impaired, and selling, purchasing, distributing or delivering dangerous drugs;

• Ryan L. Howard, 34, Market Street, Boardman, fentanyl related compound possession and drug possession;

• Steve A. Gardner, 39, Ford Avenue, possessing weapons while not allowed, improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle, carrying a concealed weapon and obstructing official business with a firearm specification;

• Anthony F. Locascio, 40, Tod Avenue, Warren, theft and petty theft;

• Curtis A. Daye Jr., 30, Mahoning County jail, tampering with evidence, vandalism, obstructing official business, resisting arrest, menacing and illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia;

• Robert D. Roman, 25, Argyle Avenue, Boardman, intimidation, retaliation, assault, obstructing official business, improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle, resisting arrest, having physical control of a vehicle while under the influence and disorderly conduct;

• Robert D. Donaldson, 29, Mahoning County jail, intimidation, retaliation, assault, obstructing official business, harassment with a bodily substance, four counts of assault, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct;

• Joseph R. Haywood, 51, Mahoning County jail, single counts of intimidation and retaliation.

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