COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A central Ohio teen accused in several
shootings was indicted Thursday on charges in what prosecutors
described as a weeklong crime spree that left at least two people dead
last summer.
Devonere Simmonds, 17, has been charged with
aggravated murder, aggravated robbery and attempted murder. The 14-count
indictment from a Franklin County grand jury also includes charges of
felonious assault.
Simmonds is being tried as an adult. His
attorney in a separate case said Simmonds expected the indictment and
does not have a statement at this time.
According to the
indictment, the crime spree began July 21 with the fatal shooting of a
22-year-old man who was inside a parked vehicle in Columbus. Another man
in the vehicle also was seriously injured.
Three days later,
Simmonds was allegedly involved in the slaying of a Columbus convenience
store clerk. Another teen also has been indicted in the clerk’s death.
A
veteran Ohio state trooper later picked up the two teens on a highway
and gave them a ride to a nearby truck stop close to London, about 25
miles west southwest of Columbus. That’s where police said they shot and
wounded a man who had been pumping gas into his vehicle on July 27.
Both teens are accused of taking the man’s vehicle. They were arrested
in Dayton the next day.
"If convicted of these charges, Simmonds
could be sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole," Franklin
County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien said in a written statement.
Simmonds was scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday.
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