Article published June 27, 2009
Weekly van tour of Toledo makes arrest of man with outstanding warrants
By IGNAZIO MESSINA BLADE STAFF WRITER
Jaycee Papuchike was minding his own business Friday, snoozing under a tree in a Toledo park, when along comes the long arm of the law … or at least, the long arm of Carty Finkbeiner.
While touring Maya Park along Emerald Avenue near the Anthony Wayne Trail on his weekly van tour of the city, Mayor Finkbeiner and some of his staffers saw the 35-year-old man sleeping.
Megan Robson, Mr. Finkbeiner's spokesman, said the mayor was there because residents near the park have been cleaning up litter, planting flowers, and mowing the grass in preparation for the July 4 holiday. "This gentleman had two outstanding warrants and has been taken into police custody," Mrs. Robson said in a statement.
On the mayor's order, Police Lt. Jeff Gorney woke Mr. Papuchike and asked for identification.
When it was learned he had outstanding warrants for two counts of petty theft, one count of disorderly conduct, and a contempt of court from Maumee, Mr. Papuchike was hauled off and booked into the Lucas County jail.
Mr. Papuchike, who told jail officials he lived in Columbus, previously listed South Reynolds Road as his address. He spent about two hours in jail and was released. He couldn't be reached for comment.The mayor usually leaves in a van from One Government Center, sometimes with as many as 10 staffers, every Thursday.
Arrests have been the by-product of the tour in the past. In June, 2007, three people were arrested, two of them after being discovered naked in a barn, as a result of Mayor Finkbeiner's regular weekly van tour. The naked duo were found in a building at 2600 West Alexis Road, where the mayor and his staff had gone in response to a complaint of drugs and prostitution.
The house appeared open and lived in, but no one answered, so they walked around back to the barn, where a police officer opened the door.
There, they found a man and a woman, both naked. The two had a total of seven warrants against them for traffic offenses and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Contact Ignazio Messina at: imessina@theblade.com or 419-724-6171.
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