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LISBON -- A convicted drug felon with charges pending after a drug raid at his now condemned Cadmus Street, East Liverpool home was recently granted a temporary protection order against East Liverpool Mayor Bobby Smith.
Smith, though, called the accusation leading to the temporary protection order "bogus," adding what was actually said was heard by two city housing inspectors. "There was no fighting. There was no arguing."
He said he'll be attending the full hearing set for May 1 in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court before Domestic Relations Magistrate Lynsey Lyle-Opalenik regarding the protection order.
"They'll see there was no wrongdoing," Smith said.
Desarro, 30, Duke Vodrey Road, filed the petition for a civil stalking protection order Thursday in reference to an incident March 19 during a housing inspection at 739 Cadmus St. when he alleged Smith was talking about his own son's death and lifted his shirt to show him his gun on his hip as he told him the "s*** is gonna stop, meaning drugs."
He then said Smith called later to tell him he didn't like how him being at the house ended with an argument with Desarro's mother, but he meant what he said in the previous conversation they had.
The protection order was granted temporarily, requiring Smith to stay away from Desarro and to not possess, use, carry or obtain any deadly weapon while the order remains in effect.
According to an East Liverpool police report on March 26, Desarro, his wife Lataya and his mother Dianna came to the police station to file a report. Desarro told police about the incident highlighted in the protection order petition when Smith was at the Cadmus Street home when the inspectors were there to inspect the house. He claimed Smith walked into a bedroom with him and closed the door, then started talking about his deceased son and his son's friend. Desarro claimed that Smith talked about wanting to harm the son's friend in the past and lifted his shirt exposing a handgun on his right hip.
He also claimed that Smith said he was in office for a reason and things were going to change and if things did not change, he would bring the National Guard in to handle things.
When asked about the report and whether there had been an investigation, East Liverpool Police Chief John Lane said the two housing inspectors had heard everything and "they said that's not what happened."
Regarding the complaint, Lane said "it was unfounded pretty much."
Smith said he volunteered to accompany the two female housing inspectors to the home on March 19 since he knew the Desarro family. He said he had known Joseph Desarro and his mother and sister for many years. While he was there, he was allegedly asked a question by Desarro's mother about the search warrant and he said he didn't know anything about it.
Smith said he asked to talk to Desarro in the bedroom and closed the door and had a heart-to-heart with him and expressed his concern for him. He did talk about how the drugs need to stop and said they were both crying and they hugged.
"I was trying to talk some sense into him. There were no threats," Smith said.
A criminal trespass charge remains pending against Desarro in county Municipal Court for allegedly entering the condemned home on March 19.
Charges also remain pending after being bound over for consideration by the county grand jury related to the execution of the search warrant at the Cadmus Street home on Feb. 12. Those charges include third-degree felonies of tampering with evidence and failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer for allegedly placing bags of suspected cocaine and suspected pressed fentanyl pills into the upstairs bathroom toilet and attempting to flush them while the Columbiana County Drug Task Force was executing the search warrant.
The search yielded over 1,000 grams or 1 kilo of suspected counterfeit pressed fentanyl pills disguised as prescription Percocet. Agents also found roughly 56 grams of suspected cocaine and more than $7,000 cash. The notice about the drug raid noted that additional charges were pending lab results.
Desarro was previously convicted of trafficking in drugs, two counts possession of drugs and tampering with evidence dating back to 2020. He was sentenced to 20 months in prison and ordered to forfeit $2,769.
Smith said the city is trying to clean up the drugs in East Liverpool and he's spoken with the police department and now the Ohio State Highway Patrol is helping out, along with the township and the Sheriff's Office.
He also said that just recently a member of the East Liverpool Police Department was assigned to the county Drug Task Force on a full-time basis, noting that the new DTF Director Jesse Smith of the county Sheriff's Office previously worked for East Liverpool as a police officer.