CLEVELAND — The man charged with shooting a Cleveland mother in the face in front of her 1-year-old son and then stealing the woman's car had been released from prison weeks earlier, according to state records.
Ronald Loftis appeared in court Monday, accused of attempted murder, aggravated robbery, felonious assault and other charges for the Jan. 2 shooting that wounded Tiffanie Muscatello outside her home near Madison and West 79th Street in Cleveland.
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"The guy came out of nowhere and just held her at gunpoint, told her to get on the ground," said the victim's daughter, Jovanna Mucatello. "She got on the ground, and he said if you don't have money, he's going to kill her."
Jovanna said the gunman took her little brother out of the car, threw him on the ground, shot her mom in the face, and drove off in her SUV.
Tiffanie was rushed to the hospital, and his now recovering from a gunshot wound to the face and mouth.
Her daughter said she received more than a dozen stitches, lost two teeth and cracked others as a result of a gunshot.
"Just to know he had shot her in the face, out of everywhere, in the face is what hurts me the most because that's public image," said Jovanna Muscatello. "That's everything, that's everywhere. There's no hiding that at all."
Tiffanie's son was not injured in the attack.
Cleveland police arrested 47-year-old Loftis the day after the shooting.
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Court records showed Loftis has an extensive criminal history, including several stints in prison dating back to 1998.
State records show Loftis was most recently released from prison on Dec. 4 after serving just under four years on felonious assault, burglary, weapon and other charges.
According to prison records, Loftis was on supervised release at the time police said he shot Tiffanie.
While she attempts to raise money to find her mom a new place to live, Jovanna is dedicated to getting justice for her mother.
"I want him to go to hell," said Jovanna Muscatello. "I want him to stay in there."
A judge set Loftis's bond at $500,000.
He's scheduled to be back in court on Jan. 26.
