Moments before the start of a court hearing Monday for a Latrobe councilman and a former city firefighter accused of stealing department funds to pay private legal fees, defense attorneys met privately with the prosecutor and resolved the criminal case. Assistant District Attorney Leo J. Ciaramitaro emerged from the chamber
Tribune-Review file
Paul Peirce | Tribune-Review
Former Latrobe firefighter Fabian Giovannagelo leaves his arraignment Tuesday on charges of stealing funds from Goodwill Hose Co. 1 to cover costs of a federal suit he and others filed over their dismissal from the department in May 2020.
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A Latrobe councilman and the patriarch of a city family involved in an ongoing dispute with the local fire department and its chief were arrested Tuesday by Westmoreland County detectives.
Councilman Robert S. Forish, 58, and Fabian Giovannagelo, 65, were arraigned on charges of theft, theft by deception and misapplication of entrusted property in 2020. They are accused of using department funds to pay for a federal lawsuit they filed against the fire company, Chief John Brasile, President Charles McDowell Jr., Latrobe Mayor Rosie Wolford and the city.