University Drive intruders plead guilty to felony charges

Two men are already incarcerated at the Grafton Correctional Institution and another is awaiting sentencing for participation in a robbery at 206 University Drive last February.

Josip Medved, 23, of Eastlake, was arrested on charges of aggravated robbery and kidnapping on March 12. He was the first suspect to be apprehended in connection to the Feb. 8 robbery.

According to Portage County court records, Medved pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery, a first-degree felony, with an amended firearm specification on Sept. 24. A representative from the Portage County Clerk of Courts office said the matter had been turned over to the Adult Probation Department for a statutory investigation and written report, delaying sentencing.

Several calls to Medved’s lawyer Michael Feldman went unreturned.

Christopher M. Blecic, 23, also of Eastlake, was arrested eight days after Medved on March 20 on the same charges of aggravated robbery and kidnapping. Records show that Blecic pleaded guilty to the aggravated robbery charge on June 24.

Blecic was sentenced to serve four years at the Grafton Correctional Institution on Aug. 18. He was credited with 69 days of time already served and is scheduled to be released on June 10, 2012.

The final accomplice to the robbery was Troy E. Midder, 27, of Cleveland. Unlike Blecic and Medved, when Midder was arrested on April 4, he was only charged with complicity to aggravated robbery. However, on July 1, he also pleaded guilty to the first-degree felony of aggravated robbery with an amended firearm specification.

On Aug. 28, Midder was ordered by the court to serve five years in prison, four for the robbery and one for the gun charge. Having already served 152 days before the sentencing, Midder could be released from the Grafton Correctional Institution on April 3, 2013.

The maximum punishment for aggravated robbery is 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.

Around 12:30 a.m. Feb. 8, the three men broke into the house located at 206 University Drive, carrying a 12-gauge shotgun and a baseball bat. One of the three proceeded to hold the four occupants of the house at gunpoint in the kitchen while the two others looted the house.

A police report filed by the victims of the home invasion reported that two Xbox 360s, a Nintendo Wii, a cell phone and cash were stolen.

According to the 2007 Kent police report, there were 11 robberies in 2007, five of which were solved. The 11 robberies last year was the lowest total since 1999. In the last 10 years, the city of Kent has averaged 15.6 robberies a year.

Contact public affairs reporter Tyler McIntosh at [email protected].