A third man has been arrested for his alleged role in a drive-by shooting at a funeral on Columbus' Northeast Side that wounded two people.
Regionn Dickerson, 18, of the city's East Side, has been charged with four counts of felonious assault, unlawful possession of dangerous ordnance, felony discharge of a firearm on or near prohibited premises, and concealing a loaded handgun, according to Franklin County Municipal Court filings.
Two other men have already been arrested in connection with that shooting. Dickerson and another suspect were found with a handgun equipped with a Glock switch,a tiny device that can turn semiautomatic guns into fully automatic weapons. The gun was linked to shell casings found at the scene of the drive-by shooting at the funeral
that took place earlier that day, according to the criminal complaint.
Just before 12:30 p.m. Aug. 17, Columbus police responded to a report of a drive-by shooting as people attending a funeral were exiting the Antioch Jordan Baptist Church, located at 1825 Woodland Park Ave. in the Argyle Park neighborhood. Court records say that the shooter was sitting in the passenger side of a stolen BMW when they opened fire.
Two people were shot and transported to local hospitals in stable condition, according to court filings.
Later that night, officers tracked the stolen BMW to the 600 block of East 4th Avenue in the Milo Grogan neighborhood, according to the criminal complaint. Officers were watching the group of men, including Dickerson, and followed them while they were driving in the stolen BMW that was used in the shooting, according to a criminal complaint filed by detectives.
Some of the men attempted to flee but were later arrested. Officers detained Dickerson and found a Palmetto Arms semiautomatic .223 caliber pistol tucked into his waistband, according to the criminal complaint.
On Aug. 19, detectives learned that Dickerson was a rear passenger in the BMW when it was used in the drive-by, the complaint states. Officers from the Nonfatal Shooting Team interviewed Dickerson, who admitted to having the gun that was used in the drive-by shooting for the past six days, the complaint states. Spent shell casings that were recovered from the BMW also matched the gun that he was found with, according to detectives.
Dickerson has been ordered held in lieu of a $500,000 bond, court filings show. His next court date is scheduled for Aug. 28.
Court records also say that the Columbus police Gang Enforcement Unit was involved in the arrest of one of the suspects. When asked by The Dispatch if police believe that the shooting was gang-related, Fuqua said there wasn't information to confirm that, but detectives are "investigating all angles."
Columbus police engage in shootout with suspects while guarding home in drive-by investigation
Hours after those three suspects were arrested, Columbus police officers who were following up on that drive-by shooting at the funeral and guarding a home of people connected with the incident came under gunfire by unknown suspects.
The suspects opened fire on officers and women as they stood near police cruisers at 10:35 p.m. Aug. 17 on the 600 block of Gibbard Avenue, body camera video shows.
At least two officers were standing in the street with the women when they came under gunfire, the video shows. They dove for cover behind the cruisers, while an officer standing in the backyard of a nearby home ran toward the gunfire and fired at the shooters, who were not visible on the video.
Just before the gunfire began, an officer was talking to a woman whose image police redacted in the video. “As far as I know, everyone that is detained got transported to headquarters,” he was saying in the video. The other officer was pulling crime scene tape out of the trunk of a cruiser.
A woman called 911 immediately after the shooting, saying her sister, cousin and niece were shot, according to a recording provided to The Dispatch. Two neighbors also called 911 and said they saw someone shooting at police.
Two women were hospitalized in stable condition after the shooting. Police said the two women were not injured by the officer who returned fire.
Police did not release the name of the officer who fired at the suspects. Columbus police Sgt. Joe Albert said his identity is protected as a victim under the state's Marsy’s Law. The incident report about the shooting describes an unnamed police officer as a victim of felonious assault.
The incident report for the shooting lists four possible suspects, all of them unknown. Police have not released any descriptions of the suspects or said what they believe their motive was.
Dispatch reporter Bailey Gallion contributed to this story.
Reporter Shahid Meighan can be reached at smeighan@dispatch.com, at ShahidMeighan on X, and at shahidthereporter.dispatch.com on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: East Side man marks third arrested in drive-by shooting at funeral
