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Tuesday, August 29th, 2023

Special prosecutor to review state probe

Area man killed by Celina police Friday

By William Kincaid

CELINA - A special prosecutor will be brought in to review a state agency's investigation into a Celina police-involved fatal shooting once the report is completed in four to six weeks, according to Mercer County Prosecutor Erin Minor.

Van Wert County Prosecutor Eva Yarger will assume the role of special prosecutor in the police shooting that left 24-year-old Corey Andrew of St. Marys dead early Friday morning.

Yarger agreed to serve in that capacity at Minor's request.

The Celina Police Department called on Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation to conduct an investigation into the shooting "as an objective third party," said Celina Mayor Jeff Hazel.

A special prosecutor is necessary for the same reason - to avoid the appearance of impropriety, Minor explained.

"We work closely with the law enforcement agencies in the county all the time, and so it's common in these sorts of situations to get what's called a special prosecutor, which is typically a prosecutor from another county, to review the report," she said.

Additional Coverage:

Celina Police fatally shoots St. Marys man

The report will contain all of the investigation's findings, such as as witness interviews, results of lab tests, photos and videos, Minor said, calling it a strictly factual presentation of all the evidence gathered over the course of the probe.

Minor said BCI indicated the report should be completed in four to six weeks.

In the meantime, BCI on Monday afternoon did not provide any additional details on the shooting. A BCI spokesman said the agency doesn't typically publicly disclose details of active and ongoing investigations.

However, he did point out that once BCI's investigation is finished it will be referred to the county prosecutor. At the conclusion of any legal process, the investigation will be posted on BCI's website for anyone to view.

Celina police shot and killed Andrew early morning near the Eastview Park pond. He was pronounced dead at Mercer County Community Hospital, according to a news release from Celina Police Chief Tom Wale.

Celina police officers were conducting an investigation at about 2:12 a.m. Friday near the Eastview Park pond when they "had an encounter" with Andrew, the release states.

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"That encounter resulted in a police involved shooting," the release reads.

No other details, including the name of any officer involved in the shooting, were revealed in Wale's release.

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