Man arrested tied to shooting near Ohio State Fair and Cold Brew Coffee heist
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A man with a lengthy criminal past, wanted by Columbus police in connection to a shooting near the Ohio State Fair, was arrested Tuesday.
According to Central Ohio Crime Stoppers, Adrian Tucker, 29, is charged with two counts of aggravated robbery and one count each of felonious assault and falsification after three alleged incidents since June 23.
On July 31, officers responded to reports of a shooting near the intersection of Hiawatha Park Drive and Clinton Street. Police located a victim suffering from a gunshot wound to the leg.
The victim, who was taken to a hospital in critical condition and later upgraded to serious condition, told police that as he was leaving the Ohio State Fair the suspect approached him and demanded property from the victim.
Police said a brief fight ensued and Tucker reportedly pulled a gun and shot the victim. A witness stopped and aided the victim until emergency crews arrived. On Aug. 2 the victim positively identified Tucker from a photo array as the man who robbed and shot him.
Tucker also has two cases pending in Franklin County Municipal Court. The first is for aggravated robbery, which stems from a July 10 incident in which he is accused of stealing a trash bag full of Cold Brew Coffee from a United Dairy Farmers store. Tucker is accused of using a gun to demand the Franklinton store clerks set another suspect free after a fight ensued during the attempted robbery.
Additionally he was arrested on June 23 for providing Grandview Heights police with a false identification after officers approached a vehicle in a parking lot of a closed business. The reporting officer said Tucker gave false information despite several warnings not to do so. Tucker eventually revealed his correct name, but offered a false birthdate.
Court records also indicate that Tucker has had several run-ins with the law, which have included six guilty pleas or sentences for various crimes over the past 10 years.
In 2014 Tucker was sentenced to two years of probation and spent 33 days in jail for breaking and entering. That sentence was suspended after 11 months. In January 2016 Tucker was sentenced to one year of prison with 187 days of jailtime credit for carrying a concealed weapon.
Ten months later he was charged with burglary and escape and pleaded guilty to the latter, in which he was sentenced to nine months in prison with three years of post-release control.
In Nov. 2021 Tucker was found not guilty of murder, attempted murder and felonious assault in the 2019 fatal shooting of William Berry III, but was found guilty of having weapons under disability. A Franklin County Court of Common Pleas judge issued a sentence of time served, which totaled 709 days.
Three months later Tucker pleaded guilty to a 2019 robbery, which included dropped charges of felonious assault, aggravated robbery, kidnapping and having weapons under disability. He received 757 days of jailtime credit towards his two-year sentence and the case was closed.
Lastly, in Jan. 2022, Tucker pleaded guilty to possession of a deadly weapon while under detention. He received three years of community control. However, that sentence was terminated after he was arrested for probation violation in July 2023.
Wednesday a Franklin County Municipal Court judge issued Tucker bonds of $250,000 for the alleged shooting and aggravated robbery, $250,000 for the Cold Brew Coffee incident and a $5,000 for the Grandview Heights arrest. A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for all three cases on Aug. 30.