Columbus police are investigating what appear to be two separate homicides in North Columbus.
The first was an overnight shooting at a residence near the intersection of 22nd Street and 15th Avenue North. The second, which police were called to at about 12:30 p.m., appears to have been a domestic dispute a few blocks away, Police Chief Fred Shelton said.
In the second case, police have arrested a juvenile, though Shelton did not immediately release his name to the media.
Police were called to the first shooting just after 8 a.m. Wednesday after a friend of the victim called 911. She had tried to call him and then, when he didn’t answer his phone, went to his home and found him shot to death.
Shelton said police do not have any suspects and are still investigating whether the killer broke into the home.
“It looked like someone may have been in the house at some point, but we’re still trying to determine that,” Shelton said.
The second shooting occurred early afternoon. Police arrived at a home in the 1500 block of 26th Street North to find a female victim dead in the driveway, while another woman was found injured in the home. She was taken to Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle and is in critical condition, Shelton said.
Police also found and arrested an armed juvenile in the area. Shelton said investigators believe the juvenile and the deceased may be brother and sister. Public Information Officer Joe Dillon later added the victim was also a juvenile.
“We believe they all know each other,” Shelton said. “All victims shared the same last name and shared the same address.”
If a juvenile is 14 or older, they can be tried as an adult for murder and other violent felonies. In this case, the suspect is older than 14, Shelton said.
Lowndes County Coroner Greg Merchant has not released the identity of the victims in either case, since officials are still notifying next of kin.
Anyone with information on either shooting is asked to call Columbus Police Department at 662-244-3500 or Golden Triangle Crime Stoppers at 800-530-7151.
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