In the pre-dawn hours of a Thursday morning, the South Linden neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio, was shattered by the sound of gunfire. On July 23, 2026, 21-year-old Maliek Venson was walking in an alley in the 2300 block of Hamilton Avenue when an altercation erupted. In the ensuing confrontation, Venson was shot. Columbus Division of Police officers responded to a report of shots fired around 3:30 a.m. and found an unresponsive Venson suffering from a gunshot wound.
Tragically, he was pronounced dead at the scene at 3:43 a.m. An obituary later confirmed Maliek Marshaun Venson's date of birth as February 23, 2005, making him 21 at the time of his untimely death.
The investigation into Venson’s homicide quickly led police to identify a suspect. According to Franklin County Municipal Court documents, the shooting stemmed from the altercation Venson was involved in while in the alley. Law enforcement identified 19-year-old Danyo Sellers as the alleged shooter, and a warrant for his arrest on a murder charge was issued. Despite being publicly named and sought by police, Sellers managed to evade capture and remains at large. The Columbus Division of Police has urged anyone with information regarding Sellers' whereabouts to come forward to assist in the ongoing investigation.
The charge against Danyo Sellers in connection with Maliek Venson's death came shortly after he was acquitted of murder in a separate case in Mahoning County. Sellers had been accused in the 2023 shooting death of 15-year-old Amya Monserrat in Youngstown. A jury found him not guilty after a co-defendant refused to testify against him. As it stands, the case of Maliek Venson's death remains unresolved. With the primary suspect still at large, there have been no arrests, and consequently, no trial, conviction, or sentencing has taken place. The investigation into the death of the 21-year-old man continues, with law enforcement still actively seeking the wanted suspect to answer for the charge of murder.
