Pat Kerrigan, executive director of the Oak Hill Collaborative, showed up at his office last week. He and fellow Mahoning Valley Crime Stoppers officers plan a monthly podcast to bring attention to unsolved criminal cases in Mahoning and Trumbull counties.
YOUNGTOWN — Two members of the Mahoning Valley Crime Stoppers board of directors, John Leseganich and Pat Kerrigan, are helping Crime Stoppers solve cold cases in the Mahoning Valley. They announced the launch of a monthly podcast that they hope will better explain the role.
Reseganich is a Mahoning County sheriff's deputy, and Kerrigan is working to “improve digital equity and quality of life” by helping people become more proficient with the internet, computers and other technology. He is the executive director of Oak Hill Collaborative.
The two recently introduced their new project on their first podcast. The product is produced at the Oak Hill Collaboration in the county's Oak Hill Building. They produce his podcast about once a month. Each will feature guests from law enforcement agencies who will provide information about unsolved cases in hopes of spreading the word about the case.
“We believe this could be an exciting new law enforcement tool to help reduce the backlog of unsolved crimes in the Valley,” Kerrigan said.
In the first podcast, Crime Stoppers was an idea that started in New Mexico in 1976, when a detective tried to solve the shooting death of Michael Carmen at an Albuquerque gas station by creating a video reenactment and telling people who called him. He explained that he tried to resolve the issue by offering a cash prize. Provides information useful in solving crimes.
Two people were arrested within 72 hours, Reseganich and Kerrigan said. That led to the creation of Crime Stoppers, which led to Crime Stoppers USA, Crime Stoppers International, and more.
There are currently 1,700 Crime Stoppers organizations in 23 countries, including Mahoning Valley Crime Stoppers. 800,000 people were arrested in 1.2 million cases and $90 million in rewards were paid.
The way it works is that people who contact Crime Stoppers are given a code. You can also remain anonymous. Using this code, tipsters can contact Crime Stoppers to get updates on the case and see if they can get paid for their tips.
If the person is eligible to receive the reward, they will be directed to a financial institution where they will provide the code and receive the money. Kerrigan said you don't need to show any type of identification to receive your reward.
Leseganich said the benefit of the way Crime Stoppers is set up is that people with information about criminal cases may not want anyone to see them giving the information to police. However, through Crime Stoppers, that information is provided anonymously so you do not have to identify yourself.
Kerrigan said calls to Crime Stoppers are never recorded, caller ID is not used, and callers remain anonymous.
To kick things off, Mr. Kerrigan detailed information that provided significant assistance to law enforcement in the Warren murder case late last year. The incident occurred early on November 11, when Ashante Fisher-Kirksey, 26, was murdered.
Noel Flores, 26, was arraigned March 5 in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court on three counts of involuntary manslaughter, unlawful discharge of a firearm and second-degree possession of a firearm on the premises of a liquor license. Pleaded guilty. He will be sentenced later.
Prosecutors said Flores went to a residence on Francis Street in Warren and was involved in a confrontation that led to a gunfight between Flores and someone inside the home. In the crossfire, Fisher-Kirksey was struck in the neck by a bullet fired by Flores. Fisher-Kirksey was the mother of four children.
Kerrigan said Warren police identified Flores as a suspect but did not know where he was. However, a tip from Crime Stoppers alerted authorities that Flores was in Florida.
So on Nov. 30, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office visited the home of a woman who had recently moved to St. Petersburg from Youngstown. On Dec. 5, officers with the U.S. Marshals Service's Florida Regional Fugitive Task Force conducted a traffic stop on the woman, returned to the apartment with the keys, and arrested Flores.
Reseganich and Kerrigan said the Crime Stoppers information was crucial in locating Flores.
Mahoning Valley Crime Stoppers' phone number is (330) 746-CLUE (330-746-2583). His website where you can watch the first podcast is www.youtube.com/watch?v=MopqE-0fv0M.
Do you have any interesting stories? Contact reporter Ed Runyan at erunyan@vindy.com
