COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Montgomery County Coroner’s Office has ruled the death of a 17-year-old boy a homicide after he was shot in west Columbus in April last year, according to police.
Police said on April 23, 2021, Christian Caro was a passenger in a vehicle driven to Larksdale Drive just before 12:30 a.m. A friend in the vehicle went there to fight someone who lives at a home on that road, according to police.
When the pair in that vehicle arrived at the resident, someone in a black car with tinted windows rolled down the driver-side window and started to shoot in their direction. A bullet struck Caro in the head.
Even when the victims fled the scene, police indicated that the suspect continued to shoot at their vehicle as the suspect’s car chased them southbound on Galloway Road. The victims’ vehicle was hit several times, according to police.
Deputies with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office were initially flagged down, treating Caro until medics arrived at the scene. Once they did, police said Caro was taken to a local hospital in “extremely critical condition.”
Caro was pronounced dead on Oct. 8, 2021.
In an update Thursday, Columbus police said the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office ruled this case as a homicide.
Anyone with information regarding the fatal shooting is asked to contact Columbus Police Felony Assault Detective Ian Pruitt at 614-645-4141 or Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at 614-461-TIPS (8477).
Caro’s death marks the 205th homicide in the city of Columbus for 2021, adding on to the highest-ever recorded in a calendar year.
