Columbus police name Target shooting victim as Abraha Ermias, say slaying may have been gang-related
Columbus police on Thursday identified 21-year-old Abraha Ermias as the man brazenly shot and killed Monday morning outside the main entrance of the Target store on Morse Crossing near Easton Town Center.
The victim, whom police say has an Atlanta home address but a driver's license from California, walked into the Target just before 11:30 and purchased something at Starbucks, according a release from homicide detectives.
After leaving the Northeast Side store, police said he was waiting outside the main entrance when he was shot twice at close range. There was no altercation or disturbance before the gunfire, Sgt. James Fuqua previously said, and the shooting was not believed to be random.
The police incident report, which was released Thursday morning also provided a little bit more information about the suspect, but with wide ranges on the description.
Detectives say the suspect is a Black male, somewhere between 18 and 30 years old, of Black, ages 18 to 30, between 5-foot-6 to 6-foot-1, and weight 165 to 220 pounds, according to the report.
Detectives also indicated on the report that the homicide may have been gang-related, but provided no further details.
Gang activity has been a focus of Columbus police, as well as a growing concern of the public, after a national research center released a report in October stating that 46% of the homicides from the first nine months of 2020 studied were confirmed or suspected to involve gangs. The report stated there are some 17 gangs or organized groups in the city with an estimated 480 members.
Ermias' death was the 175th homicide in Columbus this year, tying last year for the deadliest on record with more than a month and a half to go in 2021.
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@AllisonAWard
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Easton Target shooting: Columbus police name victim, Abraha Ermias
