Mendon home invaders granted early release

CELINA - A Hamilton County man and woman last week were granted prison release after serving less than two years behind bars for a Mendon-area home invasion in February 2012.

Patricia Abrams, 34, of Batavia, and Michael Davis, 32, of Cincinnati, on Aug. 11 were placed on community control sanctions after Mercer County Common Pleas Court Judge Jeffrey Ingraham granted their motion for early judicial release.

The terms of CCS include 180 days of electronic house arrest at their cost and five years supervision. The pair also were ordered to pay $220 restitution.

Abrams and Davis were serving four-year prison sentences for second-degree felony convictions of aiding and abetting a robbery.

Davis during a hearing Aug. 6 told Ingraham he had participated in a number of classes while incarcerated to become a productive citizen and plans to live with his parents in Cincinnati. The location is within walking distance of a support group and an employment center, he told the judge.

Abrams at the earlier hearing also voiced her plans to overcome drug problems with counseling and intervention. She also has taken courses during incarceration and told the judge at the earlier hearing she wants to return to her Cincinnati-area home.

Both defendants at their sentencing hearings Nov. 14, 2012, admitted battling heroin addictions.

A plea deal prior to sentencing dismissed more serious indictment charges of aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery and two related complicity charges, all first-degree felonies.

Joshua Moreo, 32, of Lima, who reportedly was the mastermind of the home invasion, is serving an 11-year prison term for aggravated robbery. He formerly lived in the Mendon area and reportedly knew the victims, William and Kathy Fair.

On Feb. 25, 2012, Moreo went to the Fairs' home and asked for a person who did not live there, according to Mercer County Sheriff's Office records. Kathy Fair reportedly tried to close the door after spotting Davis standing nearby in a ski mask but the trio forced their way in with a handgun and knives, according to reports.

The intruders attempted to bind the victims with duct tape after pocketing cash, but the Fairs fought back and the trio fled to Lima, reportedly stopping somewhere en route to buy drugs.

The Fairs provided law enforcement with information for a composite drawing that eventually resulted in Moreo's arrest. The investigation also led to Abrams, who reportedly was Moreo's pen pal while they served time in different prisons. Reports indicate Davis, a friend of Abrams, accompanied her the night of the invasion.