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Pocono News Section
Man Accused of Beating Mayor Brought Back to PA
Man Accused of Beating Mayor Brought Back to PA - Wednesday, May 21, 2008 at 6:08PM EST
Reported by: Laurie Monteforte
Wednesday, May 21, 2008 @ 06:08pm EST
EAST STROUDSBURG, MONROE COUNTY- A man accused of beating a mayor in the Poconos with a baseball bat is behind bars in Monroe County. Melvin Cowart appeared in court Wednesday in East Stroudsburg.
Officers are relieved because it took them about a year and a half to capture Melvin Cowart in New Jersey and bring him back to Monroe County.
Officers believe Cowart beat two people with a baseball bat in October of 2006. One was East Stroudsburg Mayor Armand Martinelli. The other was Monroe County Conservation Officer Craig Todd.
Police tell us Melvin hit them when they tried to break up a big fight in East Stroudsburg.
After the attack police charged five other young men, but Cowart escaped. Police caught him in New Jersey earlier this month and brought him back to Pennsylvania Wednesday.
Stroud Area Regional Police Captain William Parrish said, "I know that the community has been aware of us wanting him for more than 18 months - the mayor of East Stroudsburg - obviously I work closely with - working on the Police commission - and it's nice to see we could actually bring him and start the judicial process."
Cowart is scheduled for a preliminary hearing next week. That's when a judge will decide whether there is enough evidence to send his case to trial.
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