CAMPBELL, Ohio (WKBN) – A Struthers man avoided jail time in a local gun and drug case.
Isaias Mendoza Ortega, 42, pleaded no contest Friday and was found guilty of charges of failure to comply and possession of drugs. Charges of weapons under disability, possession of drug paraphernalia, a tinted window and windshield violation and obstructing official business were dismissed in exchange for the forfeiture of the gun and evidence in the case, according to court records.
Mendoza Ortega was stopped by police in Campbell on Sept. 10 after a foot and vehicle chase.
Reports said an officer tried to pull over a car Mendoza Ortega was driving at Robinson Road and Kendall Avenue for excessive window tint.
Mendoza Ortega failed to stop and drove into the parking lot of an apartment building in the 300 block of Kendall Avenue. Mendoza Ortega ignored orders to stop and ran from the car to an apartment and ran inside, according to a Campbell police report.
The officer chased him inside and took him into custody there.
Reports said inside a backpack in the car, police found a loaded semiautomatic handgun and three additional magazines, including two extended magazines, totaling 88 rounds of ammunition.
Also inside the backpack, police found marijuana in a mason jar, reports said.
Reports said Mendoza Ortega has several past convictions that prohibit him from having a gun, including attempted murder and aggravated burglary.
As part of his sentence, Mendoza Ortega will have to pay fines and court costs.
