COLUMBUS, Ohio — A Columbus man accused of strangling a woman to death nearly 11 years ago was arrested in a suburb near Dayton following a shootout with police.
Thirty-one-year-old Breyon Bryant is charged with murder in the 2013 death of 22-year-old Daivena Clay. He is also charged with felonious assault stemming from a different case.
On March 5, 2013, Bryant – who was 19 years old at the time – drove Clay to his mother’s house in northeast Columbus, according to records from the Franklin County Municipal Court.
Bryant and Clay went to a bedroom after eating in the kitchen where court records say he strangled her until she stopped moving.
Bryant attempted to drag Clay’s body into the basement and pour bleach over her body when his mother woke up after smelling the bleach.
Court records say Bryant yelled at his mother and she ran to a neighbor’s house to call 911. Police arrived and found Clay’s body inside the home, but Bryant had left the scene.
On Dec. 13, 2023, police responded to Bryant’s new address in Fairborn to interview him and serve a search warrant to collect a DNA sample from him. The search warrant stemmed from the investigation into Clay’s death.
Court records say after investigators left the home, Bryant confessed to his wife about killing Clay. Bryant’s wife told the Fairborn Police Department about the confession while being interviewed about an unrelated crime.
WHIO-TV in Dayton reports that Fairborn police officers attempted to confront and arrest Bryant at an apartment complex on Wednesday when he fired shots at officers. One of the officers returned fire. No injuries were reported.
WHIO-TV reports that Bryant surrendered and was taken into custody without further incident.
Bryant is currently being held in the Greene County Jail. It’s not clear when he will be extradited to Franklin County to face the murder charge.
