Police say they have solved 'air horn mystery'

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by Kristin Casale

Associate Editor

Stow -- Stow Police say they have solved what they are calling the "air horn mystery" after apprehending a Stow man suspected of "annoying" his neighbors multiple times with an air horn in the wee hours of the morning.

Police arrested a 19-year-old Hibbard Drive male April 8 and charged him with disorderly conduct, a fourth-degree misdemeanor, after officers determined he was responsible for sounding the horn around his neighborhood.

The suspect appeared in Cuyahoga Falls Municipal Court April 10 for an arraignment.

He has pleaded not guilty to the offense, according to the Clerk of Court's office.

His trial has been scheduled for April 28 at 2:30 p.m. before Judge Kim Hoover.

According to Stow Police Chief Louis Dirker, officers had been investigating two reports of someone sounding an air horn in the area of Hudson and Hibbard drives for several weeks.

Police responded to a March 31 report of a man in a black-hooded shirt "roaming the area on foot and sounding an air horn," at 3:17 a.m.

While several officers searched the area for approximately 40 minutes, they were unable to locate the male.

A second report of an air horn being sounded in the area came April 4 at 2:02 a.m., but the suspect was not found.

But it was not until April 8 that the person believed to be responsible was located, according to Dirker.

During a routine patrol of the area of Hibbard Drive and Algonquin Trail, Officer Erik Dirker heard an air horn blast at 2:06 a.m. and located the suspect in his Hibbard Drive apartment. His horn was confiscated.

Dirker said the officer "walked around on foot and knocked on a couple of doors" to determine who was using the horn.

"It was just one of those things where you just keep being persistent," he said. "[The officer] had been spending some time in the area because of the complaints."

E-mail: kcasale@recordpub.com

Phone: 330-686-3917