A stolen gun has led to indictments against a man and local woman.
The Union County Grand Jury has indicted Brittney Nicole Lemaster and Gregory A Clark.
Lemaster, 27, of 723 S. Walnut St., is charged with one count each of breaking and entering and grand theft.
Clark, 38, of Newark, is charged with one count each of breaking and entering, grand theft and having weapons while under disability.
“The allegation is they were working together,” said Union County Prosecutor Dave Phillips.
According to court documents, between Oct. 9-10, Lemaster and Clark went to a home in Union County. Lemaster, who knew the owner, went into the home.
“She diverted the owner’s attention,” Phillips said. “During the time she was there, he allegedly went into an outbuilding and took a firearm.”
The gun he allegedly took was an AR-15.
“The gun was taken to Columbus and sold to an individual,” said Phillips, who added that he did not know if the individual was identified or the gun was ever recovered.
The prosecutor said it took the owner a couple days to notice the gun was missing.
“The homeowner had a security video and obviously knew when the individual came to the home,” Phillips said.
He said investigators checked the footage and pieced together what happened.
If convicted on both charges, Lemaster could face as many as six years in prison.
Clark is facing additional time in prison. Clark was convicted of robbery in 1999 and burglary in 2011. Because of those felony convictions, Clark is prohibited from owning, having or even living in a home that has guns.
If convicted on all charges, Clark could face as many as 11 years in prison.
Phillips said that stolen guns, sold to an individual, pose a threat.
“Theft of a gun, regardless of the value, is always a felony,” Phillips said. “The state legislature has rightly said this is a serious matter.”
He said that situations like this, by their nature, often involve criminals.
“You never know what happens when a gun is stolen and put into circulation like that,” Phillips said.
Also indicted was:
– Bernadette Johnson, 26, whose court-listed address is the Ohio Reformatory for Women. Johnson is charged with one count of felonious assault.
According to prison records, Johnson was released from ORW last week. She had been serving a two-year prison term for felonious assault in Montgomery County.
According to court documents, on March 17, Johnson had heated coffee in a microwave. She and another inmate began to argue.
“It ended up, she threw the coffee at her,” Phillips said.
The prosecutor said the coffee caused several burns, even the loss of skin.
Johnson will be supervised by the state’s adult parole authority for the next three years. If convicted on the new charge, Johnson could face as many as eight years in prison.
– Mona Goodson, 20, whose court-listed address is the Ohio Reformatory for Women. Goodson is charged with one count of assault. According to prison records, on March 28, Goodson was admitted to ORW, convicted of assault and robbery in Franklin County. On March 31, Goodson allegedly punched an officer, “with a closed fist in the head, the eye and face area.”
“What would ordinarily be a simple assault, when you have an employee at a correctional institution, it becomes a felony,” Phillips said.
The prosecutor said that prison can be a dangerous place.
“But it shouldn’t be a dangerous place for the people that work there trying to do an important job at the reformatory,” Phillips said.
– Clayton Joseph Costin, 23, of 289 Flint Rock Dr., Delaware. Costin is charged with one count each of receiving stolen property and improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle. According to court documents, on April 20, Costin was stopped by a Union County Sheriff’s Deputy. During an investigation, the deputy learned that Costin had a loaded 9-m.m. handgun “ready at hand” Phillips said.
“He did not have a permit to carry a concealed weapon, to carry it loaded,” Phillips said. “But it turned out the gun was allegedly stolen anyway.”
If convicted on both charges, Costin could face as many as 36 months in prison.
– Samuel Alexander Long, 21, of 230 Buckeye St., Marysville. Long is charged with one count each of breaking and entering and attempted theft of drugs. According to court documents, on July 31, Long allegedly broke into a local pharmacy using the roof and ceiling.
While Long was allegedly inside the pharmacy, the alarm went off and the would-be burglar fled.
“He got out the same way he got in,” Phillips said.
The prosecutor said there was video footage of the incident and policed used a variety of methods to get pictures and video of the alleged culprit.
“The public really responded and said. ‘This is who we believe it to be,’” Phillips said.
If convicted on all counts, Long could face as many as 12 months in prison.