Austintown woman arrested

Held for alleged threats against NC university employee

AUSTINTOWN -- A local woman is in Mahoning County jail awaiting extradition to North Carolina following her arrest at an area motel.

Shannon M. Villers, 30, of Austintown, was taken into custody at the Days Inn at 5425 Clarkins Drive late on the evening of July 6, after a friend she was staying with there told Austintown police that Villers was threatening to harm herself. The witness said Villers had a knife, which police found upon arrival. Officers also had been warned by colleagues that she may have a weapon because she had been found in possession of a knife during an earlier welfare check at her Stanford Avenue residence.

En route to the scene, police were further advised that Sgt. Austin Hunter of Western Carolina University had inquired about Villers because she had made a phone call earlier that day threatening to shoot employees at the school. Villers, who also goes by the last name Wilcox, allegedly sent photos to Hunter of herself on a bed, and stated that she was being beaten and needed help.

Police arrived, along with paramedics, and spoke with the witness before approaching the room on the other side of the motel. He said Villers was texting him, stating that she would "slit her throat" if anyone other than him entered the room. He drove to the side of the motel where the room was located and notified officers that the room door was open.

Police were able to enter the room and arrest Villers, who was not injured, without incident.

Western Carolina University spokesman Benny Smith said Villers is the parent or guardian of a student who is expected to attend the university in the fall. He said Villers made specific threats against an employee in the Office of Student Affairs, telling the person that she and her family had several firearms and they were going to come to the school and shoot employees in that office. Smith did not say if there are any charges pending against anyone else.

Smith said WCU police issued a warrant for Villers' arrest on a felony charge of threatening mass violence against an educational institution. She is also facing a misdemeanor charge of communicating a threat by phone. "We don't know exactly how serious she was, but any time someone makes a threat of that nature, we have to take that very seriously," Smith said. He said an officer from their department will drive to Ohio to bring Villers back to North Carolina to face the charges.

dpompili@vindy.com

Austintown woman arrested

Accused of using pepper spray on family of 5, friend

AUSTINTOWN -- Police were called Thursday about an alleged assault at 119 Atlanta Ave., resulting in the arrest of an Austintown woman, Moriah Brown, 21.

Police arrived after a neighbor called to report a fight.

Six people were identified as victims -- a family of five, including three children plus a family friend.

The father of the family told police he had been pepper-sprayed by Brown -- and all of the others were under the effects of the chemical.

He told police he arrived at the residence to check on a friend, and when the altercation began, Brown spit on his fiancee.

The police report mentioned one of the people told an officer that when the incident moved outside, Brown grabbed a handful of rocks and threw them at a vehicle before walking back inside the residence.

Eventually the altercation reached a point at which one person pushed Brown, which resulted in her falling to the ground, and Brown began attacking him, the police report states.

Security footage showed Brown returning to the vehicle and spraying something in it. Brown first denied using pepper spray but later admitted to using it, the police report states.

Along with her assault charge, she also is charged with obstructing official business.

Brown told officers that she did not know why she was under arrest because she viewed her actions as self-defense.

In the police report, an officer stated, "a small, light blue canister of pepper spray was located on the ground behind the trash bin located on the northwest corner of the residence."

Paramedics were called to treat and evaluate all of the people involved. Brown was taken to the police department.