Slayings in city at highest in 25 years
A call about an unresponsive man inside a Milo-Grogan neighborhood house on Tuesday has turned into the city’s 113th homicide of 2017, tying both the highest number of slayings in the past 25 years and the second-highest yearly total.
Columbus fire paramedics were called just after 10:30 a.m. to a house in the 500 block of East 2nd Avenue. The man was pronounced dead at 10:42 a.m. inside the house.
It didn’t take long for Columbus police homicide detectives, who were called to the scene, to determine that the death was a slaying.
But by Tuesday evening, detectives were not saying what they believe caused the man’s death or releasing other information surrounding the case.
The man’s name also wasn’t released because detectives were still trying to contact his family.
The 113th homicide in the city matches the total homicides for all of 1992. That’s about a 35 percent increase in killings when compared with the same time last year. In 2016, there were 106 homicides for the entire year. The highest number of homicides ever in the city —139 — occurred in 1991.
A teen fatally wounded in an alley behind a Franklinton residence Monday night was identified Tuesday as the city’s 112th homicide victim.
Isaiah A. Hoskins, 18, was pronounced dead at 8:33 p.m. Monday after he was taken to Mount Carmel West Hospital by paramedics. He was shot in the chest behind the 200 block of South Souder Avenue by a gunman who fired at least five shots, according to 911 calls.
A woman who called 911 told dispatchers that a white four-door car had driven off just after the 8 p.m. shooting. She said it was too dark to see details of the car or the person inside.
Another caller contacted dispatchers with frantic cries. She kept saying, “He’s gonna die,” before ending the call with the realization, “He’s dead.”
Police have no known suspects or motives in Monday night’s shooting.
Anyone with information about these latest homicides is asked to call the Columbus police homicide unit at 614-645-4730 or Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at 614-461-8477.