UPDATE: Akron Police searching for 3 suspects allegedly involved in Na’kia Crawford murder (photos)
The 18-year-old high school grad was shot to death on Sunday in Akron
AKRON, Ohio (WOIO) - The Akron Police Department has identified three suspects — Adarus Black, Jaion Bivins and Janisha George — in connection with the murder of Na’kia Crawford.
Black, 17, was the shooter who murdered Crawford, police say.
Watch Thursday’s full police press conference below:
Bivins is planning to surrender to police, and officers are searching Summit County for Black and George.
Detectives recovered a 2015 Chevy Camaro in Cleveland that the suspects allegedly used in the fatal drive-by shooting.
Police said it was the Camaro that led officers to the suspects.
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Police say Crawford was not targeted, and that the suspects mistook her for someone else.
“Right now it appears this was a case of mistaken identity,” Said Akron Police Deputy Chief Jesse Leeser, “Na’kia Crawford was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan released the following statement after the press conference:
“While nothing will ever bring Na’kia back, we hope that these pending arrests will bring some sense of justice to this grieving family. I thank the detectives and leadership of the Akron Police Department for their skilled investigative work and I strongly encourage the remaining suspects to contact the Akron Police Department to peacefully turn themselves in today.”
Crawford, 18, was driving with her grandmother on Sunday when she was fatally shot near the intersection of North Howard Street and East North Street.
Her grandmother was not injured in the shooting.
Renowned civil rights attorney Ben Crump has been retained by Crawford’s family.
Continuing Na’Kia Crawford coverage:
- Attorney looking to identify man who gave 18-year-old Akron murder victim Na’Kia Crawford CPR
- ‘Black Lives Matter’ mural painted across Akron street near where 18-year-old Na’kia Crawford was murdered
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