Man convicted of murder in Hilltop drug shooting

The surveillance cameras outside of a Hilltop drug house left no doubt that Hakeem O. Johnston was among a group of men who entered the back door of the home less than a half- hour before one of the occupants was shot to death.

In a trial that started last week, a Franklin County jury watched the surveillance video and heard from three witnesses who testified that Johnston shot 23-year-old Laquam Gratsy during a robbery in the kitchen of the home in the 200 block of South Ogden Avenue on Jan. 30, 2017.

On Tuesday, the jury convicted Johnston, 25, of murder, aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery, each with gun specifications. In a separate decision, Common Pleas Judge Charles Schneider found Johnston guilty of having a gun despite a felony record.

The conviction for murder with a gun will bring a mandatory sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole for 19 years when Schneider sentences him Sept. 19. The judge could Johnston add nearly 30 years for the other offenses.

The jury acquitted Johnston of the more serious charge of aggravated murder, which required proof that he purposely killed Gratsy during the robbery and burglary.

Prosecutors think at least three of the men who entered the house were involved in the crimes, but one was never identified.

Devante S. Harris, 23, was sentenced in March to 18 years in prison after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter, aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery.

Witnesses said Johnston, of Franklinton, and Harris, of North Linden, both pulled handguns after seemingly arriving to hang out or buy drugs. Johnston pistol whipped Gratsy, who lived in the house, and shot him once in the back, a witness said.

Gratsy “was incapacited when (Johnston) does this shooting,” Assistant Prosecutor Michael McLean said in closing arguments. “He shoots him like a dog.”

Testimony indicated that the robbers took money, drugs and cellphones before the video captured images of them running from the house.