THIS WAS MY TATTOO ARTIST.SHE HAS DONE OVER 90% OF MY TATTOOS. GUESS I AM GONNA HAVE TO FIND A NEW ONE YA THINK?...LOOK FOR PICTURES TO BE ADDED IN MY TATTOO CRASH FOLDER
CHAMPION - Chris Gregg, owner of C&L Tattoos, said he and four other people at first had no idea what had just happened Wednesday evening when a car crashed through the front entrance window and wall of the business.
According to officials, the white Grand Am rammed through the front west entrance of the building at 4807 Mahoning Ave., drove 50 feet into the store, then backed up, hit another car in the parking lot, and then crashed into the building a second time as it tried to smash through the building again. This time, the car was stopped.
Champion fire officials said the driver was a Bristol woman who had been terminated a month ago from C&L Tattoos. Gregg and others at the scene identified her as Tabari Vandervort, who is in her early 30s.
Fire and police crews from Champion, Howland and other departments were called to the scene shortly before 5:30 p.m. to find the entire large window and entrance gone, and extensive damage to counters, tables, walls, displays and candy machines.
The driver was lying in the parking lot by the car. She was transported by ambulance to Forum Health Trumbull Memorial Hospital in Warren. Her condition was unavailable Wednesday night. No charges were filed while the investigation continued.
Fire Chief John Hickey said firefighters wanted to be careful when moving the car out of the building for fear there would possibly be a collapse of part of the structure.
Emerine Towing was able to pull the vehicle from the building without any collapse.
Hickey said there were customers and employees inside the shop at the time. However, no other injuries were reported.
Gregg said he thought the driver had left the area for work in Los Angeles.
Within a few hours of the incident, the store's open windows and entrance had been boarded up.
