COLUMBUS – A would-be burglar is dead and his accomplice facing a murder charge after they were apparently interrupted in their efforts to rob a West Side home early Friday morning.
Columbus police responding to a reported shooting in a home at 3831 Scales Drive, near the Hollywood Casino, at 3:30 a.m., found that two armed men had been burglarizing the home when they were surprised by the residents returning home from work, Homicide Sgt. Jeffrey Strayer said.
“Several struggles ensued” inside the home, resulting in several family members being injured and one of the suspects being critically injured, Strayer said.
Clement Dwight Cooper, 36, was pronounced dead at the scene by Prairie Township Medics, Strayer said.
Strayer says Michael Antonio Long, 32, was charged with murder. Under Ohio law, a suspect can be charged with murder if an accomplice is killed while committing or fleeing a crime.
Injured victims were taken to various hospital, including Mt. Carmel Medical Center and Grant Medical Center, according to police. A fifth was treated at the scene, the station reported.
This is the 52nd homicide of the year.