Charles Daugherty Receives Suspended Jail Sentence as Separate Civil Case Remains Pending

A 61 year old Barberton man received a suspended jail sentence Thursday in Mercer County Common Pleas Court after entering a no contest plea.

Charles E. Daugherty was issued a bill of information and pleaded no contest. He was sentenced to 30 days in the Mercer County Adult Detention Center, with all 30 days suspended.

As part of the sentence, Daugherty must commit no criminal offenses above the level of a minor misdemeanor for the next two years.

Daugherty had previously been indicted in October 2025 on one count of grand theft, a fourth degree felony. That indictment alleged he obtained money belonging to Krom International between January 7, 2022 and April 4, 2025. Court documents alleged the amount involved was at least $7,500 but less than $150,000.

Daugherty is also named in a separate civil lawsuit filed by Krom International in Mercer County Common Pleas Court.

The civil complaint names Daugherty, Travis Daugherty, Mercede Seigfried and Carolina Recycle Partners, LLC as defendants. The lawsuit contains a series of allegations involving unauthorized sales of company inventory, the removal or sale of equipment, alleged misuse of confidential business information and trade secrets, and alleged self dealing during Charles Daugherty’s time as a vice president with the company.

Krom alleges in the civil complaint that more than $300,000 worth of inventory was lost during Daugherty’s tenure and that company equipment was dismantled or sold without authorization. The complaint also alleges confidential machinery specifications, customer information and other proprietary materials were provided to or used for the benefit of another company.

The civil complaint seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages, restitution and other relief from the court.

Those claims are allegations made in a civil lawsuit and have not been established as findings of fact by the court.