CINCINNATI (WXIX) - The Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office determined that the actions taken by the Lockland police officer in the fatal officer-involved shooting on northbound Interstate 75 was justified.
Samuel Mumyarutete, 48, of Woodlawn, was the man who was shot and killed on the shoulder of I-75 near the Glendale-Milford Road exit in Evendale.
It happened while police from multiple agencies searched for suspects who fled a crashed stolen vehicle that had just led police on a chase in two counties at 2:26 a.m. March 19.
According to Hamilton County Prosecutor Connie Pillich, Mumyarutete was seen walking on the interstate when the Lockland police officer was responding to the scene.
Officers from two counties were looking for suspects after a stolen vehicle had crashed in Evendale.
After spotting Mumyarutete walking on the highway, the Lockland officer stopped the cruiser with lights and sirens on.
The officer used several verbal commands, but Mumyarutete was not listening, Pillich explained. He was also holding a metal pipe or rod in his hands.
Body cam footage shows a sheriff’s deputy with a K9 responding to the confrontation. In the video, the Lockland officer is heard saying, “He’s got something in his hands” and “He’s not listening to my orders.”
Pillich says the officer gave multiple commands and even deployed his taser before firing several rounds at the suspect.
“No officer ever wants to resort to use of force,” commented Pillich. “The officer feared for his life and first tried to subdue Mr. Munyarutete with a Taser. Our hearts go out to Mr. Munyarutete’s family, but it’s important every officer who has dedicated their life to protecting citizens return to their own family at night.”
Mumyarutete was confirmed dead at the scene.
According to the prosecutor’s office, it is unknown if the 48-year-old was even involved in the police pursuit or if he just happened to be walking on the interstate.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) has been investigating the shooting since that morning.
On Monday, a BCI spokesman said the agency’s investigation “is ongoing.”
Mumyarutete’s family’s attorney shared the following comment:
“While we are aware of the prosecutors decision not to present this incident to the grand jury, there are additional issues that need to be addressed.Accordingly, we are reserving further comment until the conclusion of BCI’s investigation.”
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Officer’s attorney says man shot was no ‘innocent bystander’
Mumyarutete’s family told FOX19 NOW last month they “believe he may have been an innocent bystander.”
He didn’t speak English and was a refugee from the Congo.
Days before Mumyarutete was shot, Woodlawn police arrested him on an assault charge.
Court records show he was accused by a man who said he did not know Mumyarutete of attacking him with a white metal pole and trying to hit him with it at a Metro bus stop.
The officer’s attorney, Stew Mathews, recently told FOX19 NOW: “I don’t know that anyone has determined whether or not the decedent was involved with the stolen car/car chase but I believe the evidence will establish that the decedent was not an ‘innocent bystander’ no matter what the circumstances are during his brief interactions with the Lockland police officer.”
No body camera video of shooting
The officer who shot Mumyarutete was not wearing a body camera.
That’s because the four Lockland officers who have been testing the devices for the department weren’t working at the time, the police chief has explained.
Since the shooting, the village of Lockland’s home page was updated to explain why officers do not have body cameras:
We understand how important body-worn camera footage is in building public trust, especially during critical incidents.
The Lockland Police Department currently has 15 full-time and two reserve officers. Four officers are equipped with body cameras as part of our initial testing phase. When the program began in Fall 2024, cameras were assigned across shifts; however, scheduling changes since then have resulted in some officers rotating off those original assignments.
We initially applied for a state grant in Fall 2024 to cover the full program, and we are still awaiting the outcome of that request. In the meantime, the Village Council approved full funding in the 2025 budget. A contract was signed on February 18, 2025, and the remaining cameras are expected to ship on March 27, 2025.
With setup and training, we anticipate all officers will be fully equipped by mid-April.
We are committed to completing this rollout as quickly and responsibly as possible.
Last week, Lockland Police Chief Michael Ott referred FOX19 NOW to the village’s website for the latest information but also sent us this response:
“While we continue our ongoing conversations with community members and keep open lines of communication with Mr. Mumyarutete’s family, we do not have any additional updates. BCI is still conducting its independent investigation, and we remain committed to full transparency.”
Officer is ‘extremely distraught’ over shooting
The officer spotted Mumyarutete walking along the side of the highway as the officer returned from dropping a prisoner at the Hamilton County Justice Center, according to his lawyer.
The officer got on the police radio and asked if they were still looking for suspects in the stolen car crash. Told they were, the officer stopped to talk to the man, his lawyer says.
The officer reported a man was walking toward him with something in his hands and was refusing to obey commands, according to Lockland Police Chief Michael Ott.
“The subject has something in his hands, won’t show me his hands, he’s walking straight at me on 75 North,” the officer said, according to March 19 initial emergency communication reports,
Chief Ott wrote in a news release that morning: “The officer attempted to use less lethal force to address the non-compliant suspect but the Taser didn’t stop the suspect. The suspect continued to refuse to obey commands and then the Lockland officer had to resort to his firearm. The suspect was shot in the chest and fell to the ground.”
Mumyarutete died at the scene.
The officer’s lawyer has said he is “extremely distraught” over having taken a life but tried to do everything possible to avoid that.
“Like every police officer I know, he signed up to help people. He never imagined that he would become involved in a fatal officer-involved shooting even though all police officers recognize that very real possibility,” Mathews told FOX19 NOW on March 22.
“I would characterize him as extremely distraught over having taken a life but he used every tool that he had to de-escalate the situation and when none of those tactics were effective in the split seconds that this situation was evolving, he did what his training taught him and used the force necessary to stop the threat that he was facing.”
The officer was put on paid administrative leave, which is customary in these situations.
The village of Lockland’s law director has denied FOX19 NOW’s public records request for the officer’s name and personnel file, writing in a response:
“Personally identifiable information of certain officers is withheld pursuant to R.C. 149.43(A)(1)(v) because release would violate a constitutional right to privacy....Additionally, the involved officer’s attorney invoked Marsy’s law. We are required to abide by their directive under Ohio law.”
The Ohio Supreme Court is considering whether law enforcement officers can invoke Marsy’s Law, which protects crime victims’ rights, to withhold their names from public records in use-of-force cases.
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