Authorities have captured a man who allegedly shot and killed a 4-year-old girl Friday night on Akron's west side in what appears to be a domestic dispute.
Police issued an arrest warrant with charges of murder and having weapons under disability for 31-year-old Darnell L. Bitting in connection with the shooting.
He was captured by U.S. Marshals Saturday afternoon at a house on the 740 block of Corley Street.
The shooting happened Friday around 10:30 p.m. at a home on the 900 block of Mercer Avenue. A police source said the shooting appears to be the result of a domestic dispute.
When officers arrived, they located four children — ages 7, 6, 4 and 3 years old, inside a car with their grandmother.
The children's mother later told police she came to the house to retrieve some property but when no one answered the door, she broke out several windows of the house.
According to authorities, a man came out of the residence armed with a rifle and fired a shot that hit the car. The grandmother —who was in the passenger seat at the time — climbed into the driver's seat and drove away, only to discover the 4-year-old had been struck by a bullet.
The child was taken to a nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead. The medical examiner's office identified the girl as Janaya Swain.
According to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections, BItting served time in prison for domestic violence in 2013. He was sentenced to one year but was released after serving three months.
