Mario Wade Convicted of Two Counts of Aggravated Murder and Sentenced to 72 Years to Life

Posted on 8/16/2022

Defendant: Mario Wade

Columbus, Ohio — A Franklin County jury on Friday, August 12, convicted Mario Wade,23, of Columbus, in the 2018 murders of Keith Williams III and Marlazia Jones-Mattox. Immediately following the guilty verdict, Judge Julie Lynch sentenced Wade to 72 years to life in prison.

Wade was sentenced to 30 years for each of the two counts of aggravated murder, six years on firearm specifications, three years on gang specifications and three years on having weapons while under disability. The sentences will run consecutively.

Franklin County Prosecutor Jason Manning handled this case.

On Jan. 1, 2018, Wade, Christian Dillion, and a 15-year-old went into a residence at 670 S. Hague Ave. to rob Williams. During the robbery attempt, Williams shot the 15-yearold in self-defense. Wade then shot Williams nine times. As Wade and Dillion were leaving the residence, they heard Jones-Mattox, who was nine months pregnant, screaming as she struggled to exit the house through a window. Dillion shot her five times in the back from close range. Williams and Jones-Mattox were engaged.

Jones-Mattox was rushed to Mt. Carmel West Hospital, where doctors delivered her baby boy. The baby was without oxygen for more than 45 minutes, causing cerebral palsy. Both Williams and Jones-Mattox died of their gunshot wounds.

After the shooting, Wade and Dillion drove around Columbus, dumping two guns in two separate sewers and one gun in Big Walnut Creek. Police recovered all three weapons,and the Columbus Division of Police’s crime lab linked all three guns to the murders of Williams and Jones-Mattox.

A jury convicted Dillion on similar counts in November 2021. He was given 78 years to life. The 15-year-old is now a triplegic. Wade, Dillion, and the 15-year-old were members of the Hilltop Hot Boys gang on Columbus’ west side.