Nick McWilliams reporting – A Canton man who stole four vehicles and pled guilty to counts including felonious assault, robbery, and attempted abduction received four years in the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections.
Ricky Moore attempted to jump in front of vehicles in the Newcomerstown area before being taken by police officers to Cleveland Clinic Union Hospital for an evaluation.
Moore refused treatment and reportedly became combative, before leaving the hospital and stealing cars in Dover and New Philadelphia, also forcibly removed a window air conditioning unit from a Dover home. At that same home, when a female pulled into the driveway, the 37-year-old demanded the keys to the vehicle before gaining access to the driver’s seat and driving away.
He reportedly approached another vehicle, asking a juvenile in that car to enter his vehicle. When the occupants refused, he rammed their vehicle and drove away.
Moore was eventually apprehended after stealing a box truck and driving to Bolivar, surrendering to village police.
Tuscarawas County Assistant Prosecutor Scott Deedrick said that he was aware of mental health issues that contributed to the acts, but also that Moore was under the influence in July of 2022 during the three-hour spree.
“I know that Mr. Moore recounted that he was just trying to get home, I believe, in Akron. And that he didn’t remember a lot of the events. It is clear that he was suffering from acute intoxication when this all happened.”
In total, Moore was sentenced to a third-degree felony count for four to six years in ODRC, with all other charges running concurrently, most of which were for one year, including four grand theft of a motor vehicle counts and six counts of aggravated menacing.
Moore spoke before the court, asking for forgiveness in a tearful apology. He had no previous felony convictions prior to July’s events, according to Common Pleas Judge Michael Ernest.
He received 290 days of local jail credit, and will be under community control sanctions for 18 months to three years upon his release.
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