BLUFFTON, Ohio (WJW)– The Ohio State Highway Patrol released new information on Friday in the death of a Bluffton police officer.
Officer Dominic Francis, 42, was putting down stop sticks on Interstate 75 in Hancock County early Thursday morning when he was hit by a car of fleeing suspects.
Throughout the day on Thursday, authorities arrested three suspects. Emin Johnson, 20, of Euclid, was charged with manslaughter, and Zachary Love, 21, of Columbus, was charged with failure to comply and receiving stolen property. Both are at the Hancock County Justice Center.
Dante Tate, 19, of Euclid, was charged with failure to comply and receiving stolen property. He’s at the Medina County Jail.
It started at about 2 a.m. Thursday when troopers spotted a speeding car on Route 23 and were unable to stop the vehicle. According to the highway patrol, the car continued to flee on I-75.
After hitting the officer, the three suspects ran away from the vehicle. Then, at about 3 a.m., a car was stolen on County Road 39. Officers arrested one of the suspects in that area, but the search for the other two continued.
Troopers found the stolen car on Interstate 71 in Medina County. That suspect fled on state Route 82 before he was taken into custody during a traffic stop at state Route 57 and Chestnut Ridge Road in Elyria.
The third suspect was caught just before 1 p.m. Thursday.
