COLUMBUS, Ohio — A man accused of killing a Columbus mosque leader was found guilty of aggravated murder and other charges on Wednesday.
A jury found John Wooden Jr. guilty of killing Mohamed Hassan Adam in 2021. He was also convicted on two counts of murder, aggravated robbery and kidnapping.
Adam was reported missing on Dec. 22, 2021, after he never arrived to pick up his child from daycare. Investigators said Adam was last seen leaving his mosque in a yellow van that night. His body was found inside the van near a wooded area off Windsor Avenue two days later.
An autopsy report showed Adam died from multiple gunshot wounds, including one to the head.
Adam's friends and family took the stand during the beginning of the trial last week.
On the day that he went missing, Adam's friend said he received a strange phone call.
“[He was] a very polite person but what I heard that time was different. The phone call I got said you bring the money, and I said first 'I don’t recognize this voice.'"
Adam's friend said he heard two different voices on the phone, and he was worried.
Wooden's sentencing date has not been set yet.
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