COLUMBUS, Ohio — Two men were found guilty in the shooting death of a man near an east Columbus bar two years ago.
A jury found Charles Williams, 36, guilty of murder and other charges for the death of 40-year-old Jeffrey Chandler. The jury also found Lee Gill, 49, guilty of tampering with evidence.
On Oct. 22, 2022, police were called to Platform Lounge, located at 1058 Country Club Road in east Columbus, and found Chandler with a gunshot wound. He died about 20 minutes after the shooting, according to police.
Gill owned the bar and Williams was working as a security guard. After an argument, Williams, armed with a rifle, and Gill, armed with a firearm, chased down and shot at Chandler.
Evidence showed Chandler was killed by a round consistent with a rifle. The evidence also showed rounds consistent with a 9mm handgun were fired in Chandler's direction as well.
Williams was found guilty of one count of murder, one count of felonious assault and one count of tampering with evidence.
Gill was found guilty of one count of tampering with evidence. A charge of weapons under disability will be tried in court as Gill waived his right to a jury trial to that charge.
Williams is scheduled to be sentenced on April 5. He faces a minimum of 21 years in prison. Gill's sentencing date has not been set yet, but he faces nearly two years in prison for tampering with evidence.
A third suspect in the shooting, Dominic Elmore, pleaded guilty to two counts of felonious assault last year and was sentenced to four years in prison.