MAN SHOT DURING ARGUMENT

Elyria – A man was shot in the leg Sunday night – initially the victim said he was shot during a robbery attempt while walking along Middle Ave. The victim later changed that story.

Staff from Elyria Memorial Hospital’s Emergency Room first contacted police informing them that they were treating a gunshot victim. Police were told that the victim, Ralph A. Russo, had been shot near Gas USA and a friend had driven him to the Emergency Room.

Police sent Officers to both the ER and to Gas USA to investigate.

Security Officers at EMH advised Police that they observed a Red Mustang pull into the ER and two male’s got out – one with a gunshot to his leg (Russo) and the other (a juvenile) holding his jaw and bleeding from the mouth. The two men went into the triage area and the man in the Mustang left the area. The two men told the Nurse in Triage that they had been robbed at gunpoint.

Officers were unable to immediately interview the Russo because he was in X-ray – so they got the following story from his friend with the jaw injury.

The man told Police that they had just left Gas USA after purchasing cigarettes – while walking south on Middle Ave, several blocks away from the gas station, two black males approached them asked if they had any money. The victim said they advised the men that they had no money, at which time the one man was punched in the mouth. Then Russo was told to turn over his wallet to the men – when he said no they heard “a loud bang” similar to a gunshot. After the shot the alleged perpetrators fled the scene in an unknown direction. The young victim described the two men as being in their late teens to early twenties, both black wearing all black. One was said to be wearing baseball cap. The only description he gave about the gun was that it was black.

Officers were able to interview Russo a short time later and observed the gunshot wound – entry wound above the right knee on the outside of his mid thigh and an exit wound located on the inside of his right thigh slightly above his right knee. Once the bullet exited his right leg it made its way into his inside left calf below his left knee and exited out of his left calf.

Police received a slightly different story while interviewing Russo. Russo said that the men had left Gas USA after purchasing beer and they were approached by one black male while walking on Middle Ave. Russo described the man as being in his mid twenties, wearing a South Pole T-Shirt with gold lettering, with a pair of dark blue jeans shorts. Russo also told Police that the man had dread locks that were shoulder length and a blue bandana covering his mouth and nose. Russo said that when his friend said he had no money the man punched him in the nose – then when the man couldn’t get Russo’s wallet from his back pocket he pulled out a black semi-automatic handgun that was similar to a Glock.

Russo said once the gun was pulled out he was shot in the thigh area and the man then took off running. He said he and his friend then went to his friend’s house on 16th Street where he later decided to go to the hospital for treatment.

Officers continued to interview the two “victims” separately and like a house built out of balsa wood in a hurricane, their stories quickly disintegrated.

After all of the BS the Officers had to work through, here is what really happened.

Russo, who lives in Oberlin, was visiting with his friend at his home on 16th Street right off of Middle Ave. Russo asked his friend to give him a ride home to Oberlin – his friend refused stating that gas prices were too high right now. Russo, not happy with his friend’s response, punched him in the jaw. His friend, not happy with being punched in the jaw, grabbed his 9mm, pulled the slide back to chamber a round that was sitting in the magazine. After chambering the round the man shot Russo.

Elyria Police Detectives continue to investigate the incident.

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