Police investigating ‘drug deal gone bad’

Victim shot in stomach, flown by helicopter

A search warrant filed Sept. 30 in Lorain County Common Pleas Court, reveals additional details on the investigation into a June 4 shooting in Avon Lake stemming from what police say was a “drug deal gone bad.”

According to an affidavit filed June 4 with the court, at 12:44 p.m., a 33-year-old man suffered a gunshot wound to the stomach following an attempted drug transaction on Lake Road “possibly west of the smoke stacks” on Lake Road.

A follow-up investigation revealed the shooting actually took place at a condominium on Moore Road between Walker Road and Electric Boulevard.

A 34-year-old man who dropped off the victim at a hospital, told Avon Lake police the victim set up the drug deal with two other males between ages 20 and 24, and was robbed at gunpoint, according to the affidavit.

The man who dropped off the victim was held on the ground with a gun to his head, and he could hear the victim struggling before the gunshot followed by a scream, the affidavit says.

The suspected shooter, a Black male, allegedly made the comment, “burns … don’t it” after the shooting.

The victim was transported by helicopter from UH Avon Health Center to MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland.

Interviewed by detectives, the shooting victim told investigators he and a friend were attempting to purchase an ounce of marijuana before going golfing, and could not recall physical descriptions of the assailants or the location.

The 34-year-old man identified the suspect and told police on June 8 the drug deal was arranged over SnapChat messenger and the suspect was coming in from Philadelphia.

A forensic extraction of his phone identified the number used to setup the transaction was a Philadelphia number.

In collaboration with the Philadelphia Police Department’s Detective Bureau, the suspect again was identified in a photo lineup after investigators obtained a copy of his driver’s license photo.

Reached by police, the Philadelphia man denied any involvement in the shooting.

The search warrant seeks the review of cellphone data for the suspect, court records show.