Teen Killed, Thrown From Vehicle in Roberts Road Crash Near Hilliard

A 19-year-old man was killed, and two other people were injured late Friday night when a sedan attempting a left turn collided with an SUV on Roberts Road in West Columbus. Aaden Owen Elswick was thrown from the vehicle in the crash and later died from his injuries shortly after arriving at the hospital.

The collision happened just after 11 p.m. at the intersection of Roberts Road and Potts Place, according to myfox28columbus.com. Police say the sedan was traveling west on Roberts Road and attempted to turn left onto Potts Place as an SUV approached in the oncoming lane, cutting off the SUV and causing the crash. Elswick was initially taken to the hospital in critical condition before he died, the two other people involved were also taken to the hospital with conditions that have not been disclosed.

Road Closed as Investigators Reconstruct the Crash

Columbus police fully closed Roberts Road between Walcutt Road and Hilliard Rome Road while crash reconstruction teams processed the scene, according to WBNS 10TV. Dispatchers received the initial emergency calls reporting the two-vehicle collision shortly before 11:10 p.m., and emergency crews rushed three people from the scene to local hospitals, per the station's report. The crash remains under investigation, and police have asked anyone with information to call 614-645-4767.

Under Ohio Revised Code § 4511.42, drivers turning left within an intersection must yield the right-of-way to any oncoming vehicle close enough to present an immediate hazard, a legal standard that is likely to be central to determining fault in the crash. Failure-to-yield violations in Ohio are generally classified as minor misdemeanors unless aggravating factors such as distraction or prior offenses apply. The Columbus Division of Police Traffic Bureau Accident Investigation Unit, which is leading the probe, investigates and reconstructs more than 16,000 traffic collisions across the city each year and responds to all fatal and life-threatening vehicle crashes within city limits, according to ThatCarHitMe.com.

Roberts Road's History of Deadly Wrecks

This is not the first fatal crash on this stretch of road. The same corridor was the site of a fatal Christmas Eve rollover in 2025, when a 33-year-old driver hit a guardrail near Roberts and Windflower roads and was ejected from his vehicle. In October 2024, a Hilliard resident was sentenced to 12 to 15 years in prison in Franklin County Common Pleas Court following a fatal vehicular homicide collision on Roberts Road, a case that stemmed from a 2021 head-on, left-of-center crash that killed one passenger and injured two others.

Those recurring incidents have caught the attention of regional planners. The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission's 2026–2029 Transportation Improvement Program includes planned safety modifications for Roberts Road, such as compact urban roundabouts at nearby intersections like Spindler Road, according to the Far West Side Area Commission, which represents local neighborhood interests in the planning process.

A Citywide Push to Cut Traffic Deaths

The crash comes as Columbus continues efforts under its Vision Zero program to reduce road deaths citywide. Data presented by the program in May showed annual traffic fatalities in Columbus fell from around 73 in 2020 to 48 in 2025, as reported by NPR News affiliate coverage. Vision Zero Columbus focuses safety interventions on surface streets designated as part of the city's High Injury Network.

Elswick's death also fits into a broader pattern of young-driver risk that Ohio safety officials have flagged this year. Statewide data finalized in May 2025 by the Ohio Traffic Safety Office found that 72% of teen-involved fatal crashes in Ohio that year were caused by the teen driver, with 72% of those at-fault drivers aged 18 to 19 — a trend Hoodline detailed in its coverage of a 19-year-old killed on SR 13 earlier this month. It is not yet known whether any citations or charges will be filed in connection with Friday's crash.

Anyone with information about the collision can contact Columbus police at 614-645-4767. Central Ohio Crime Stoppers also accepts anonymous tips at 614-461-8477, offering cash rewards for information that leads to arrests or indictments, according to CAP4Kids.