Squirrel traps family in their home: Strongsville Police Blotter
By Sun News staff

STRONGSVILLE

ANIMAL COMPLAINT, DRAKE ROAD: Residents called police because they were trapped in their home by a temperamental squirrel.

The squirrel was desperate to get in the house, according to the residents. The squirrel kept jumping at the garage door and would run at the residents any time they opened a door.

ANIMAL COMPLAINT, SOUTHPARK CENTER: Several motorists called police on Sunday because a large turtle was blocking the entrance to the Westfield-SouthPark Shopping Center.

The turtle was taking a long time to cross the Howe Road entrance to the mall. The motorists were afraid the turtle would get hit by a car.

ANIMAL COMPLAINT, CHANDLER GREEN: A man reported Sunday that he was bit by a dog while walking in his neighborhood.

The man said he was bitten in the hip by a German shepherd-Labrador retriever mix, who was being walked by children.

MISCHIEF, COOK AVENUE: Someone plastered eggs and toilet paper all over Zellers Elementary School on Sunday night.

MISCHIEF, WEST 130th STREET: Motorists called police Saturday because a group of juveniles were jumping into traffic.

One of the boys was wearing a bear costume, according to the callers. The group was gone when police arrived.

DISTURBANCE, PEARL ROAD: Two Cleveland men and a Cleveland woman were advised Saturday for trying to load items from a dumpster behind the Honey Hut into their vehicle.

The group was confronted by police after several calls reported hearing screaming coming from the area. Officers found the group arguing over the best way to stuff a large freezer unit into their vehicle.

Officers made the trio put all the items back that they were trying to take.

MISSING JUVENILE, WHITNEY ROAD: Employees of Chestnut Lakes Apartments called police Friday after a 1-year-old girl wandered into the lobby.

The girl had gotten out of the apartment while her mother was in the bathroom. Her father had left the door open while he was going to get something from the car.

THEFT, DRAKE ROAD: Employees of SGL reported Friday that someone stole several items from their property.

Someone had stolen a few two-inch thick steel plates and other materials from the building. The items are valued at $3,000. Someone also dismantled a wooden crate to construct skateboard ramps on the property.

ANIMAL COMPLAINT, LENOX DRIVE: Strongsville police officers had their own version of the classic children’s story, “Make Way for the Ducklings” last Thursday. An officer helped a mother duck and her ducklings safely cross the intersection of Lenox Drive and Howe Road.

SUSPICIOUS SITUATION, DARICE PARKWAY: A woman reported last Thursday that she believes someone is maliciously spraying Nair or permanent solution in her hair while she is at work. She also believed that someone was spraying something in her car.

SHOPLIFTING, PEARL ROAD: Employees of Gordon Food Services reported April 27 that a Brooklyn man stole four boxes of steaks from the store. The man was gone when police arrived.

911 MISUSE, OLDE SURREY COURT: A Strongsville woman was advised April 26 for playing a prank on the Medina County Sheriff’s Department.

Medina dispatchers called the woman back after they received a hang-up call from her cell phone. The woman told dispatchers she and her friend called 911 because she was hungry.

The woman told Strongsville police the incident was a misunderstanding. She accidentally hit a button and did not realize that her phone dialed 911.

The woman thought the dispatchers return call was someone playing a trick on her.

BURGLARY, GEORGETOWN COURT: A resident reported April 26 that his neighbor entered his house without his permission. The neighbor took back a tool the resident had borrowed from him. The resident also accused the neighbor of stealing his drill.

Of course there is a Remix

With great costumes comes great responsibility.
“Kick-Ass,” an action movie opening this week, spins a tale of average Joes becoming masked crime fighters, but New York has been home to real-life caped crusaders for years.

Gotham’s legion of real-life superheroes includes a leather-clad martial-arts expert who battles drug dealers, a masked religious hipster who feeds the homeless and an engaged pair of relationship counselors, Arjuna Ladino, 42, and Shanti Owen, 50, who don star-spangled spandex as the “Transformational Warriors” to spread the power of love.

NYC SUPERHERO PHOTO GALLERY

“We are just people who really care and try to go out and make a difference,” says Chris Pollak, 25, whose alter ego, “Dark Guardian,” strikes fear in the hearts of drug peddlers in Washington Square Park. “The idea is to be this drastic example of making change in your community.”

The Staten Islander has been patrolling city streets for the last seven years, frequently putting himself in harm’s way. A drug dealer flashed a gun at Pollak once, and he has almost come to blows with thugs.

“My fiancée is very supportive, but she gets worried if I’m doing anything that involves danger,” Dark Guardian said. “When I met my fiancée, I told her I liked to do this thing where I go out and help the homeless and patrol the streets. I didn’t get into the whole costume thing — I waited until a little bit into the relationship.”

Occasionally, Dark Guardian gets an assist from two fellow superheroes, Chaim “Life” Lazaros, 25, and Ben Goldman, 23, a k a “Cameraman,” who has videotaped the Washington Square showdowns. The plucky pair also hands out food to the city’s homeless at least once a week.

Lazaros, who shares a Harlem hideout with Cameraman, said it takes a certain type to don a mask and do good. “They all have extremely strong personalities and a desire to change the world,” he said.

That’s not to say all real-life superheroes seek change through crime-fighting.

“The Phantom Zero,” a 33-year northern New Jersey-based superhero, raises money for charities and donates to the homeless. He has also accompanied Dark Guardian on some of his patrols. “I was scared out of my gourd,” The Phantom Zero said, declining to give his real name.

But his 20-year-old masked sweetheart, “Nyx,” has shown some gumption. Before moving to New Jersey to be with her super man, she lived in Kansas, where she would secretly snap shots of meth labs and send them to the authorities.

“I used to carry weaponry with me. But seeing as how I’m in New York . . . I don’t,” Nyx said.