CLEVELAND - Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley announced Kristel Candelario, 32, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder of her 16-month-old daughter, Jailyn Candelario, in June 2023. . “Today, we remember Jailyn – a beautiful baby girl who was taken from this world [...]

CLEVELAND - Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley announced Jason Iverson, 29, pleaded guilty to the aggravated murders of his pregnant sister, her unborn child, and her husband in Maple Heights on September 4, 2023. In addition, he pleaded guilty to felonious assault for shooting his son. “Jason Iverson violently gunned [...]

CLEVELAND - Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley announced that Tirrell Edwards, 41, was sentenced to life in prison with the first eligibility of parole after 24 years for shooting and killing Amanda Williams, 46, in their shared residence in Warrensville Heights. “On October 10, 2023, Tirrell Edwards shot and killed [...]

CLEVELAND - Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley announced that Jayrion Church was sentenced to 20 to 25 years in prison for the attempted aggravated murder of a Cleveland Police Detective in March 2023. . “Jayrion Church knew right from wrong. He made the selfish decision to shoot Detective Bahrijczuk four [...]

CLEVELAND - Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley announced that Tirrell Edwards, 41, was found guilty by a jury of shooting and killing Amanda Williams, 46, in their shared residence in Warrensville Heights. . “The State of Ohio believes that Amanda Williams’s death was an intentional homicide without justification and the [...]

CLEVELAND - Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley announced that former Cleveland Division of Police Officer Kevin Stanard, 61, was sentenced to two years in prison for assaulting a 48-year-old female and having a weapon in a liquor permit premises in May 2023. . “Mr. Stanard not only acted in a [...]

CLEVELAND – Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley announced that the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office’s (CCPO) G.O.L.D. Unit (Genetic Operations Linking DNA) has identified suspects John Doe #103, John Doe #10, and John Doe #161 utilizing forensic genetic genealogy (FGG) and CODIS Familial searching. “Our G.O.L.D. Unit continues to work with [...]

CLEVELAND - Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley announced that a Cuyahoga County grand jury has returned an indictment charging Luis Barajas, 76, for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old female during a blessing in Westlake. “Luis Barajas is a predator who took advantage of a 15-year-old during a vulnerable time. This indictment [...]

CLEVELAND - Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley announced that Matthew Ponomarenko, 34, pleaded guilty and sentenced to life in prison with the first eligibility of parole after 45 years for the murder of his 5-year-old son in Parma. “Matthew Ponomarenko brutally beat and killed his own son. With this sentence, [...]

CLEVELAND - Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley announced that 14 individuals were arrested as part of “Operation Spider Web,” an undercover operation led by the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force*.  The four-day operation ran from Thursday, October 26 to Sunday, October 29.  The purpose of the operation was to identify [...]