Photos might give clue on shooter
Columbus police have released surveillance photographs that show the man who shot a father of six outside a Northwest Side restaurant last week.
Shueyb Abukar was shot and killed in an apparent robbery last Friday night outside the Golden Corral restaurant at 3710 W. Dublin-Granville Rd. while his wife and children looked on.
Family and friends who gathered on Saturday to bury Abukar said he had fled Somalia for the United States about 15 years ago and moved to Columbus only a few years ago, leaving behind jobs as a translator and at a bank in New York City.
He and his wife have six children, all 9 or younger.
Police reported no new leads in the case on Thursday but released surveillance images of the shooter, who was wearing an Ohio State hoodie and pajama pants with the OSU insignia.
In the photos, however, the man’s head and face are obscured by a door frame. Police said they hope someone still might recognize him by his stature or clothing.
The man approached Abukar and his family as they walked out of the Golden Corral around 6:30 p.m., demanded his wallet and shot him. Police do not believe Abukar knew him.
A person was waiting for the shooter in a getaway car, though police haven’t said yet whether they believe the driver was a man or woman. The car was described as a tan, four-door sedan.
A fund to help the Abukar family has been set up through Muslim Family Services of Ohio, a social-services organization that helps families in crisis.
Contributions may be made online to the organization’s Widow and Orphan Fund at ohiomfs.org or by mail to Muslim Family Services of Ohio, P.O. Box 14023, Columbus, OH 43214.
Anyone with information on the killing or the person depicted in the photographs is asked to call the Columbus police homicide squad at 614645-4730 or Crime Stoppers at 614-461-TIPS.