Police officer admits to drinking before fatal hit-and-run crash
A Columbus police officer who prosecutors alleged was drunk and behind the wheel when a 27-year-old woman was hit and killed in April 2022 admitted to drinking heavily before the fatal crash.
Demetris Ortega, 50, of the South Side, pleaded guilty Thursday to charges of not stopping after a crash and misdemeanor drunken driving Thursday morning before Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Carl Aveni.
The April indictment was in connection with the crash, which was reported around 2:40 a.m. April 20, 2022, and killed Naimo Mahdi Abdirahaman, 27, who was crossing Morse Road when she was hit.
Assistant Franklin County Prosecutor Jeff Zezech said Thursday that detectives had little to go on while investigating, as no camera footage from nearby businesses or witnesses to the crash itself were able to be identified.
Zezech said the crash, which happened on Morse Road near Walford Street, in the Northland area, was at an intersection with marked crosswalks and a 45 mph speed limit.
About five hours after the crash, Zezech said police got a call about a suspicious vehicle parked at a home a few miles away. That vehicle, a Kia Sorento registered to Ortega, had a missing wheel and a dent and blood on the hood.
Zezech said debris from the crash scene matched the Sorento “like puzzle pieces,” and investigators determined the blood was Abdirahaman’s.
Police determined that Ortega went to Fitzwilly’s Pub, on East Dublin-granville Road, around 11:15 p.m. the day before the crash. Ortega was seen on the pub’s camera system drinking multiple beers and taking several shots, as well as ordering alcohol for others.
Ortega was “visibily stumbling” as he walked out to his car, Zezech said the video showed.
Data obtained from the Kia Sorento showed the SUV left the bar and went a few minutes before the crash.
The SUV’S data showed it was traveling between 51 and 56 mph before the crash, slowing from 56.5 mph to about 53 mph, without braking, at the crash site. The data from the SUV also showed it continuing to where it was later found, Zezech said.
Because of the time between the crash and when Ortega’s vehicle was found, it was not possible for a blood test or field sobriety tests to determine Ortega’s blood alcohol level, Zezech said. Investigators also were unable to determine who was at fault for the crash, which is why vehicular homicide charges weren’t filed.
Zezech said during an interview that Ortega admitted to “blacking out” from drinking the night of the crash and “self-rated his intoxication at a nine out of 10.”
Abdirahaman’s family said she was born in a Somali refugee camp in Kenya in January 1995 and came to the U.S. as a child. She became an American citizen, graduated from Columbus City Schools’ Centennial High School and attended Columbus State Community College.
She also had a young son, who was 2 when his mother was killed, and has been living with family to help care for him.
Abdirahaman’s family has expressed frustration with how Columbus police handled the investigation and a lack of transparency for the nearly 12 months before the indictment. They also filed a lawsuit against Ortega, which remains pending.
Abdirahaman’s family was not at Thursday’s plea hearing.
As of Thursday morning, Ortega was still listed as an active police officer with the Columbus Division of Police. An investigation after the criminal case concludes will determine whether Ortega, who was off-duty at the time of the crash, violated any policies or procedures.
Ortega faces up to three years in prison, as well as a multi-year driver’s license suspension. His sentencing is scheduled to take place on Nov. 3. bbruner@dispatch.com @bethany_bruner