A Union man ended up in jail this weekend when his attempts to explain the railroad equipment in the back of his truck failed to impress authorities.

Johnny Wayne Fisher, 43, 629 Rice Avenue Ext., Apt. 4B, Union, is charged by the Union Public Safety Department with parking on railroad property and grand larceny.

The incident report states officers were dispatched to the Norfolk Southern Depot off Keenan Avenue on Saturday morning in response to a report of a possible larceny of railroad equipment. One of the officers noticed a tan-colored truck leaving the area and as he was watching it came to a stop. He questioned the driver who turned out to be Fisher who said he was returning some railroad equipment his son had.

The officer then noticed a number of metal items in the back of Fisher’s truck. The report states as the officer was walking back to his patrol car he noticed Fisher had gotten out, walked to the back of his truck, put the tailgate down and started unloading the metal items.

The person who reported Fisher’s activities then came over and spoke to the officer. The report states he told the officer he had been driving by when he noticed a white male loading some railroad equipment into the back of what he described as an off-gold color truck. The complainant said he had driven around to get a better view and the white male continued to load his truck with the metal.

The officer then advised Fisher of his rights and the report states he said he understood them and agreed to talk to police. When asked why he was loading the metal onto his truck, the report states Fisher said he wanted to put the metal into the right place because an area scrapyard would not take anything that belonged to the railroad unless you had a written letter.

A railroad official contacted by the officers said that Norfolk Southern does not give away metal or equipment. When the official arrived on the scene he pointed that 14 18-inch mounting plates worth $30 each; a $200 welding pot; five joint bars worth $75 each; and a switch latch worth $35 had been taken and moved.

Fisher was then arrested and transported to the Union County Jail.

Petit Larceny

Selling an old car for scrap is fine, as long as it isn’t stolen.

Joseph Richard Parks, 50, 936 Webber Lake Road, Union, is charged by the public safety department with petit larceny. The warrant for Parks’ arrest states in February he stole a 1950 Plymouth from 329 Barnado Road and sold it to an area scrapyard for $209.60. Parks was taken into custody Friday morning.

Cruelty To A Child

The combination of an eyewitness and surveillance footage sent a Union man to jail for repeatedly hitting a child.

Richard Shane Lawson, 38, 815 Webber Lake Road, Union, is charged by the public safety department with disorderly conduct and child cruelty.

The incident report states an officer was dispatched to a store parking lot in response to a report of a man hitting a child. The officer spoke to the witness who said he had pulled into a parking space and saw Lawson hit a child about the head. He said he told Lawson not to hit the child like that but Lawson responded by cursing him. The man said Lawson hit the child in the head many times.

The report states the officer then viewed surveillance footage taken in the parking lot. The footage backed up the witness’ statement and Lawson was arrested.

Criminal Domestic Violence

A honking car horn led to a Union man being arrested Sunday night for hitting a woman in the face.

Jonathan Edward McAbee, 32, 502 Drugstore St., Buffalo, is charged by the public safety department with criminal domestic violence.

The incident report states an officer was outside the public safety building when a car drove up to the building and the driver honked the horn. When the officer went to see what was the matter, he found the victim behind the wheel bleeding from the nose and mouth. The victim told the officer McAbee had hit her while she was driving.

McAbee was arrested and photos the victim’s injuries were taken as evidence.

Assault And Battery

Disrespect was the reason a Union man gave police for hitting another man in the face Saturday night.

Oscar Ervin Craig, 63, 200 Hamlet St., Union, is charged by the public safety department with assault and battery.

The incident report states officers were dispatched to a residence at 212 Hamlet St. in response to a report of an assault. When they arrived they found the victim bleeding from the nose and mouth area. After the victim was transported by Union County EMS to Wallace Thomson Hospital, officers went to Craig’s home and found him to be surprisingly honest.

When they knocked on his door, the report said Craig opened it and, when an officer spoke to him, said “You here cause I hit him.” The officer then advised Craig that no one had asked him anything, they were just trying to get his side of the story. Craig then said he had hit the victim and that he was not going to lie about it. When the officer asked why he had hit the victim, Craig said the man had disrespected him and his family, so he hit him.

Craig was then placed under arrest and transported to jail.

Incidents

The following incidents are being investigated by the public safety department:

Vandalism

Sometime earlier this year someone set fire to the back screen door of a rental property at 115 Carson St. The owner told the responding officer he went to do some work at the house on Friday and discovered the screen door and some of the siding had been burned causing $250 worth of damage. The report states the fire appeared to have been started with a rag. The exact date of the damage could not be determined but apparently occurred sometime between Jan. 20 and April 2.

More Vandalism

A man who stopped by to check on a friend’s house at 1225 Arthur Boulevard discovered the glass in the back door had been busted. The incident was reported on Thursday and the incident report states it appeared someone had used a seat cushion and their fist or elbow to bust out the window. There was also a mark on the glass that was consistent with a rock lying near the door.

There were no signs of forced entry, however, and damage was estimated at $250. The incident apparently occurred sometime between 1 p.m. March 31 and 1 p.m. April 1.

Car Vandalized

A Union woman reported her car was vandalized. When she left home at 219 South Church St. to go to work shortly before 4 p.m. Thursday her car didn’t have any scratches on it. When she returned home just before 12:30 p.m. Friday the woman discovered the driver’s side of her burgundy 2000 Chevy Malibu had been scratched several times with a sharp object. Damage to the vehicle was estimated at $500.

Arrests

The following persons were arrested by the public safety department:

Rusty Shane Jeter, 22, 203 Lawson Avenue, Union, charged Friday with trespassing after notice.

Kacie Logan Vaughan, 20, 644 Philippi Church Road, Union, charged Friday with driving under suspension.

Mack Boler III, 26, 106 Hamm St., Union, charged Sunday with trespass.

Fred Douglas Smith, 53, 111 Morning Glory Drive, Union, charged Thursday with disorderly conduct.

Roosevelt Lipscomb, 77, 105 McBeth St., Union, charged Friday with driving under suspension.