Former Columbus Police Detective Sentenced for Leaving the Scene of a Fatal Crash Involving a Pedestrian

Posted on 11/3/2023

Defendant: Demetris Ortega

The Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office announced that former Columbus Division of Police Detective Demetris Ortega, 51, was sentenced to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections for 18 months. Ortega pleaded guilty in September to a felony charge of failure to stop after an accident and a misdemeanor charge of operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol, a drug of abuse, or a combination of them.

On April 20, 2022, Ortega was driving near the intersection of Morse Road and Walford Street when he struck and killed Naimo Abdirahman, 30. Ortega failed to stop after the crash and left the scene. An investigation determined that Ortega had been drinking and was under the influence of alcohol at the time the crash occurred.

A Franklin County grand jury indicted Ortega on the two charges in April after being presented with all evidence in the case and considering all applicable charges. As part of Ortega’s sentence, Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Carl Aveni suspended Ortega’s driver’s license for three years.