Columbus Police are urging the public to come forward with information regarding a series of recent shootings.
In the past 24 hours, Columbus Police have responded to seven shootings, and officials are pleading for leads. Sgt. James Fuqua is optimistic, but acknowledges police-community relations are at a low ebb after clashes during protests against police brutality.
“They want to see change, they want to make sure young people or anyone in our city is not hurt, so I absolutely have faith in the community to do that," Fuqua says. "But this is now our official call to action to the community and asking for their help.”
Columbus is on pace this year to log as many homicides as 2017, the city's worst year for murders on record. Fuqua says the numbers are even more unsettling because for so much of the year, people have been under stay-at-home orders.
"So the fact that these are numbers are mirroring what we had in that record year, is definitely troubling and we need everyone to step up to bring that number down," he says.
The division made a similar pleas in February, and was able to gather information that led to an arrest for a shooting at the Driving Park library.
