Police hope reward will bring new leads

16-year-old girl dead, five other teens wounded

A $25,000 reward is being offered as part of the continuing investigation into the shooting at a Downtown park in May that killed a 16-year-old girl and wounded five other teens.

The reward is being offered by Columbus police and the FBI in the homicide investigation into the death of Olivia Kurtz, who was shot while attending an unapproved DJ concert May 22 in Bicentennial Park. Five other teens were wounded in the shooting.

Columbus police Deputy Chief Tim Becker said Wednesday that there is some information that could potentially link the May 22 shooting to other shootings at public parks, but did not elaborate, citing the ongoing and sensitive nature of those investigations. The FBI has been assisting the city in the Bicentennial Park case.

“We as a community should be heartbroken for (Olivia's) family and be willing to do anything to give them closure,” Columbus police Chief Elaine Bryant said. “When is enough enough?”

Kurtz, 16, was killed in the shooting, which occurred after more than a hundred teens and young adults had gathered at the amphitheater in the park for a concert by a DJ that was publicized on social media but was not authorized by the city Recreation and Parks Department.

Around 11:50 p.m., gunfire erupted and concertgoers scattered. Kurtz was wounded and rushed to Ohiohealth Grant Medical Center, but she did not survive. Five other teens were wounded.

Kurtz had attended the concert with her sister and some friends. She was a sophomore at Fort Hayes Metropolitan Education Center, where her studies had an emphasis on Japanese.

Two weeks before her death, she was inducted into the school's Japanese (National) Honor Society.

The investigation is ongoing into the May 22 shooting and detectives are hoping the $25,000 reward will help persuade those with information to come forward.

Detectives are also hoping that video or photo evidence from the events at Bicentennial Park will be provided to help further the investigation.

PROVIDED PHOTO Olivia Kurtz, 16, was fatally shot May 22 while attending an unauthorized DJ concert with her sister and friends at the amphitheater in Bicentennial Park along the Scioto River in Downtown.