COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Columbus police have identified three suspects in the fatal shooting of a man, as well as a possible motive behind the attack.
Police have issued warrants for murder for Rayshawn L. Rogers, 31; Christian A. Capers, 34; and Damon R. Capers, 35, in the shooting death of Mario Copeland on Sept. 23. Investigators said family and friends believe Copeland sold drugs to Lithasha Streeter, who may have been a relative of Rogers. Streeter later died of an overdose.
On the day he died, Copeland was in an alley south of the 1200 block of East Hudson Street when a group of men confronted him. During the confrontation, one of the men pulled a handgun, shooting Copeland several times, police said. The suspects then fled the scene.
Officers later found Copeland, 38, suffering from a gunshot wound in that same area, according to the Columbus Division of Police. He was taken to Grant Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 1:34 p.m. that day. Copeland’s death was the 102nd homicide in Columbus for 2022.
Columbus police asked anyone with any information on either the death of Copeland or Streeter to contact the CPD Homicide Unit at (614) 645-4730 or Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at (614) 461-TIPS (8477).