On a Tuesday night in April, the sound of gunfire pierced the air near the intersection of Walker Street and Kemble Street in Utica. It was around 11:30 p.m. on April 22, 2025, when a shot spotter alert brought police to the scene. As officers arrived, they witnessed a car speeding away from the area. Inside that vehicle was 33-year-old Omar Mitchell, a male resident of Utica who had been struck by the gunfire.
He was rushed to Wynn Hospital, but the severity of his injuries proved to be fatal, and he succumbed to his wounds.
The initial hours of the investigation were challenging for law enforcement. The Utica Police Department's Major Crimes Unit took the lead, processing multiple locations connected to the incident. Investigators began the process of interviewing potential witnesses and the two other individuals who were in the vehicle that transported Mitchell to the hospital. For a time, no suspects were publicly identified, and no arrests had been made as the police continued to piece together the events that led to the city's first homicide of the year.
Eventually, the investigation led to an arrest. An Illinois man named Darius Steward was charged in connection with Omar Mitchell's death. In September 2025, Steward appeared in Oneida County Court and pleaded guilty to a charge of second-degree murder. Having initially rejected a plea offer, he later accepted the terms. As a result of his guilty plea, Steward is expected to be sentenced in November to a term of 20 years to life in state prison for his role in the killing of Omar Mitchell.
