CALDWELL, Ohio--A teenager from Stow accused in a deadly robbery scheme that lured victims with a fake Craigslist ad will be tried as an adult, a judge ruled Thursday.
Prosecutors had presented enough evidence that the case of Brogan Rafferty, 16, should be transferred, Judge John Nau of Noble County Juvenile Court said. The decision means Rafferty, if convicted, could face life in prison without parole instead of just a few years in a juvenile detention center.
"Since the alleged acts in this matter are category-one offenses," said Judge Nau, "the court is gonna find there is probable cause to believe the juvenile committed the acts as alleged in the complaint."
Rafferty will be charged in adult court, possibly this month, with charges similar to the juvenile counts, Noble County Prosecutor Clifford Sickler said. He said the counts would be "probably limited in the number,'' without elaborating. Juvenile charges against Rafferty accused him of killing David Pauley of Norfolk, Virginia, with the assistance of Richard Beasley, 52.
The charges allege Rafferty and Beasley also tried to kill Scott Davis, a South Carolina man who escaped after being shot in the arm by hiding in the woods until it got dark. Beasley is being held in Summit County Jail in Akron on unrelated drug and prostitution charges.
Rafferty's mother declined to comment Thursday, but her court appointed attorney responded to Rafferty's bond, which was posted at one-million dollars. "Well, it's not unusual," said Andrew Warhola. Warhola said it's common procedure for the parents of accused juvenile offenders to be appointed an attorney during the proceedings. "The court contacted me, because she has the right to independent legal counsel."
In an interview last month with FOX 8 News, Yvette Rafferty said Richard Beasley was a family friend who mentored her son. "He looked up and he always thought he was doing the right thing. Sometimes you don't pay attention. You trust somebody, you don't pay attention to all the details around you is what I think," said Yvette Rafferty.
Brogan is a junior at Stow Munroe City Schools and has been held at a juvenile detention center. Authorities say applicants who fell for the scheme answered a Craigslist ad for a job at a nonexistent cattle ranch in Noble County, 90 miles south of Akron in rural southeastern Ohio, were robbed, then killed. The teen was questioned by the FBI and arrested in mid-November, several days after Davis said he was shot in the arm after he answered the ad.
The body of Pauley, 51, was found on the Noble County property, owned by a coal company and often leased to hunters. Authorities say Pauley was killed Oct. 23. Timothy Kern, 47, of Massillon, was found Nov. 29 in a shallow grave near an Akron-area shopping mall. He had been shot in the head. Authorities believe the body of Ralph Geiger, 55, of Akron, found Nov. 29 in Noble County, is also linked to the scheme. He died Aug. 9 of a gunshot wound to the head.
Beasley was a Texas parolee who returned to Ohio in 2004 after serving time on a burglary conviction. He was awaiting trial on prostitution and drug charges when authorities took him into custody last month. Police have said a halfway house he ran in Akron was a front for prostitution.
Beasley has not been charged in the Craigslist case, although the chief prosecutor in Summit County said he will be charged with murder and attempted murder in attacks on four victims.
Prosecutors had presented enough evidence that the case of Brogan Rafferty, 16, should be transferred, Judge John Nau of Noble County Juvenile Court said. The decision means Rafferty, if convicted, could face life in prison without parole instead of just a few years in a juvenile detention center.
"Since the alleged acts in this matter are category-one offenses," said Judge Nau, "the court is gonna find there is probable cause to believe the juvenile committed the acts as alleged in the complaint."
Rafferty will be charged in adult court, possibly this month, with charges similar to the juvenile counts, Noble County Prosecutor Clifford Sickler said. He said the counts would be "probably limited in the number,'' without elaborating. Juvenile charges against Rafferty accused him of killing David Pauley of Norfolk, Virginia, with the assistance of Richard Beasley, 52.
The charges allege Rafferty and Beasley also tried to kill Scott Davis, a South Carolina man who escaped after being shot in the arm by hiding in the woods until it got dark. Beasley is being held in Summit County Jail in Akron on unrelated drug and prostitution charges.
Rafferty's mother declined to comment Thursday, but her court appointed attorney responded to Rafferty's bond, which was posted at one-million dollars. "Well, it's not unusual," said Andrew Warhola. Warhola said it's common procedure for the parents of accused juvenile offenders to be appointed an attorney during the proceedings. "The court contacted me, because she has the right to independent legal counsel."
In an interview last month with FOX 8 News, Yvette Rafferty said Richard Beasley was a family friend who mentored her son. "He looked up and he always thought he was doing the right thing. Sometimes you don't pay attention. You trust somebody, you don't pay attention to all the details around you is what I think," said Yvette Rafferty.
Brogan is a junior at Stow Munroe City Schools and has been held at a juvenile detention center. Authorities say applicants who fell for the scheme answered a Craigslist ad for a job at a nonexistent cattle ranch in Noble County, 90 miles south of Akron in rural southeastern Ohio, were robbed, then killed. The teen was questioned by the FBI and arrested in mid-November, several days after Davis said he was shot in the arm after he answered the ad.
The body of Pauley, 51, was found on the Noble County property, owned by a coal company and often leased to hunters. Authorities say Pauley was killed Oct. 23. Timothy Kern, 47, of Massillon, was found Nov. 29 in a shallow grave near an Akron-area shopping mall. He had been shot in the head. Authorities believe the body of Ralph Geiger, 55, of Akron, found Nov. 29 in Noble County, is also linked to the scheme. He died Aug. 9 of a gunshot wound to the head.
Beasley was a Texas parolee who returned to Ohio in 2004 after serving time on a burglary conviction. He was awaiting trial on prostitution and drug charges when authorities took him into custody last month. Police have said a halfway house he ran in Akron was a front for prostitution.
Beasley has not been charged in the Craigslist case, although the chief prosecutor in Summit County said he will be charged with murder and attempted murder in attacks on four victims.