A man is facing a false identification charge after police say he provided a fake name to police in Schuylkill County while being questioned about a dog attack at a local baseball field last Tuesday (April 7).
Police in Tamaqua say they responded to the Bill Angst baseball field around a little after 10 a.m. after a witness reported that a dog attacked another dog. The owner of the victimized dog told police that while walking a tan beagle mix on a leash, a tan pitbull dragging a leash attacked and bit the beagle mix on the left front shoulder, causing three puncture marks.
The owner of the pitbull, later identified as Michael Lombardo, 57, initially told police his name was Michael Anthony Ranallo. Lombardo told police he fell on a rock while walking his dog, dropped the leash, and the dog ran after the other dog.
When police could not find a record of the name provided, they gave the man several opportunities to be honest about his identity, police say. Police brought a handheld mobile ID scanner to the scene, but a scan yielded no results.
Following further investigation, police identified the man as Lombardo and discovered he had an active warrant out of Lehigh County. Police later located Lombardo near N. Columbia St. and Reily Ave. and took him into custody.
After confirming the active warrant, police lodged Lombardo in the Schuylkill County Prison at the request of authorities in Lehigh County. Because Lombardo is homeless, police say he is staying with a relative on E. Elm St., who also took custody of his pitbull.
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