Third suspect arrested in connection to north Columbus homicide of 13-year-old boy

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – The third suspect charged in connection to the murder of a 13-year-old boy in northeast Columbus was in court Tuesday morning.

According to court records, 22-year-old Mekhi Webster, who was charged with murder on Oct. 27, was arrested Monday in connection to the fatal shooting of 13-year-old Angel Diaz.  

Webster, along with 21-year-old Dock Parker Jr. and 20-year-old Javion Jones are among four suspects accused of the April 14 murder of Diaz, who was found suffering from a gunshot wound at 10:15 p.m. in an alley behind East Hudson Street, near Medina Avenue in North Linden.

Officers noted that a 2008-2012 white Ford Escape with a black bumper and temporary tags was seen in the area that night and investigators began looking for video surveillance between 8:15 and 10:15 p.m. It was discovered that a “muzzle blast” came from the SUV in question. ShotSpotter technology showed shots were recorded from the area where the suspects were allegedly driving. A witness also observed gunshots coming from the vehicle.

The investigation originally led police to Jones, who denied the shooting but admitted to being in the vehicle. Though he claimed to be alone, video evidence showed at least four individuals in the Ford.

Search warrants indicated that Jones’ cellphone location data, along with Parker’s phone data, were traveling together using the same cellphone towers. Additional data from the phone showed videos of the two in the Ford Escape posing with handguns. One of the guns, police say, had a “switch” attached to it, linking the gun to the shots fired at the scene that night.

A Franklin County Municipal Court judge issued Jones a $1.5 million bond in June, and last week Parker, who has previous convictions for assault and multiple weapons charges, received a $2 million bond.

Webster, arrested Monday, was also issued a $2 million bond Tuesday in Franklin County Municipal Court.