Man convicted for role in 2021 murder

SANDUSKY — A man charged in connection to the fatal shooting of an 18-year-old Sandusky man was found guilty at the conclusion of a jury trial on Wednesday. Jacob B. Owens, 20, 2400 block Pioneer Trail, was found guilty of complicity to aggravated murder, two counts of complicity to murder, tampering with evidence, carrying a concealed weapon, improperly handling a firearm in a motor vehicle and complicity to felonious assault, according to court documents. Owens was indicted in July 2021 in connection with the murder of Tajour Tye. Tye, 18, was gunned down in the 700 block of Erie St. in the early morning hours of June 13, 2021. Paramedics transported him to Firelands Regional Medical Center where he was pronounced dead. Police arrested three suspects later the same day as the shooting: Owens, Timothy Hill, 21, and a 16-year-old boy. Police believe the three suspects knew Tye through mutual acquaintances. The shooting occurred after a physical altercation, Sandusky police Chief Jared Oliver said. Hill had a final pretrial hearing scheduled for May 11. His attorney, Russell Leffler recently filed a motion to continue the hearing due to a conflict with another case he is handling in Sandusky County, according to court documents. The 16-year-old boy's case status is not known. Owens has a sentencing hearing scheduled for 2 p.m. on May 15 in Judge Roger E. Binette's court. In Ohio, a person convicted of complicity to an offense is punished as if he were a principal offender. Due to this and his conviction for complicity to aggravated murder, Owens could be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.