A woman who failed to show up for work was found dead inside her Miami Township apartment Friday morning, and by the time police caught the man they say is responsible, he had allegedly been involved in two reported carjackings in Moraine but successfully stolen only one vehicle, stolen a Dayton police cruiser, and crashed it into an occupied home. Seven officers and two civilians ended up hurt before the ordeal was over.
Miami Township police discovered the woman's body inside her apartment in the 7300 block of Cold Water Court after conducting a welfare check when she did not report for work, according to WHIO TV. The address sits inside the Mad River Apartments residential complex, according to Dayton 24/7 Now. Officers had initially been called to the block shortly before 8 a.m. Friday, and Miami Township police launched a homicide investigation, per a police spokesperson cited by WHIO TV. The victim was found suffering from an apparent gunshot wound, Miami Township Police told the outlet.
A Spree Across Three Cities
Investigators say the suspect's night began well before officers ever found the victim. Prior to a pursuit in Dayton, the man allegedly assaulted a semi-truck driver in Moraine in an attempt to steal his truck, then assaulted two other people before taking their SUV, the station's report states. From there, the spree moved into Dayton, where officers tried to stop him on foot late Thursday night.
During that chase, the suspect evaded officers by ducking into a residential backyard before circling back and stealing an unattended Dayton Police Department cruiser, per the same account. What followed was a high-speed pursuit in the stolen patrol car that ended only when the suspect crashed through a home in the 2300 block of Greenway Avenue in Dayton, sending two residents inside the house to the hospital. According to the Ohio Supreme Court's State v. Gibson (2008) decision, a chase ended when Richfield police executed a pit maneuver that forced the driver to crash, after which the defendant fled on foot. According to the Ohio Supreme Court's summary of State v. Smith (Ohio Ct. App. 2008), a vehicle failed to negotiate a turn and crashed into a telephone pole in a residential neighborhood in Youngstown, Ohio.
Seven Officers Hurt Subduing Suspect
The crash did not end the violence. Seven police officers sustained injuries while subduing the suspect at the Greenway Avenue scene, with six requiring medical treatment at a local hospital, the report notes. Officers say the suspect bit one of them and attempted to seize his service weapon during the struggle to take him into custody.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, which operates under the Ohio Attorney General's Office, was requested to assist Miami Township police with the homicide investigation. BCI provides crime scene processing, laboratory testing, and technical investigative assistance to local agencies upon request, a role that explains why state investigators responded alongside a township department to process the Cold Water Court scene.
A Small Department Facing a Complex Case
Miami Township is the seventh-largest township in Ohio, covering more than 21 square miles with a 2020 Census population of 52,156, according to Miami Township records. Its police force is authorized for roughly 42 officers, a modest size for a department now coordinating a homicide probe that stretches across Moraine and Dayton city lines.
If the suspect is ultimately convicted of murder, Ohio law calls for an indefinite prison sentence of 15 years to life under Ohio Revised Code § 2929.02. Police have not yet released the identities of either the victim or the suspect, and it remains unclear exactly how investigators tied the Moraine carjackings and the Dayton cruiser crash back to the Miami Township killing. Those details, along with any formal charges, are expected as the investigation continues.
