CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Division of Police (CDP) has announced the arrest of one of the two Summit County men wanted in connection with a "street takeover" that happened in Cleveland last month.
Police arrested 18-year-old Gauge Michael Thomas Franklin of Akron on an aggravated arson charge in connection with fires that happened during a takeover at West 25th Street and Lorain Avenue on Sept. 15 at approximately 2:30 a.m.
John Alan Dietrich, 20, of Barberton is also wanted by Cleveland police for aggravated arson.
On Friday, a $100,000 bond was set for Franklin. He has a preliminary hearing scheduled for Oct. 15
In the arrest warrant, Cleveland police allege that Franklin and Dietrich "did knowingly and purposefully participate in pouring a fire accelerant on a city street and igniting it, causing the street to catch fire and cause a substantial risk of serious physical harm to the surrounding crowd."
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Cleveland Division of Police at 216-623-1234 or email police@clevelandohio.gov.
More recently, several incidents impacted multiple locations in Cleveland late Saturday evening into early Sunday morning as suspects stopped traffic, pointed guns at people, lit fireworks and attempted to start fires.
Cleveland Police Chief Annie Todd told Cleveland City Council that the first report of activity came from E. 55th and Woodland at around 11:30 p.m., and then more and more street takeovers started popping up, dividing police resources.
Other takeovers occurred on West 65th Street, East 93rd Street and Opportunity Corridor, Steelyard Commons, East 105th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and East 55th Street and Woodland Avenue.
The final area was reported on I-90 West at West 14th around 4 a.m. Sunday.
"There was about 20 vehicles on the freeway that were blocking all lanes of traffic, shooting off fireworks, attempting to light fires on the freeway and pointing firearms at citizens who were confronting them," according to Chief Todd.
Todd told councilmembers that the CDP has put together a task force after the weekend incidents, which includes each police district, the traffic unit, fire/arson, gang impact unit and other local partner agencies.