TOLEDO, Ohio — A man who police say was responsible for the death of a Toledo man and a suspect in the shooting at a Whitmer High School football game has been arrested in Texas.
Jaron Phillips, 22, was arrested in Houston earlier this week and charged with aggravated murder, attempted murder, and felonious assault.
Phillips is accused of killing Johnathan Coleman during what police described as a premeditated murder in a drive-by shooting on Oct. 6.
Phillips is charged with felonious assault for his suspected involvement in the Whitmer High School football game shooting that injured three people the following night.
For members of the Washington Local Schools community, it's a much-needed resolution to a nightmare chapter in Whitmer High School's history.
The shooting sent students and parents running for their lives at the stadium. Nine months later, Phillips is in the process of being extradited back to Toledo to face trial for his alleged crimes.
"It certainly has changed us, but I think that having him behind bars will certainly help us begin to heal," Washington Local Schools Superintendent Kadee Anstadt said.
Closure. That's the word Anstadt used to describe the arrest of Phillips.
"We certainly didn't escape that night without injury, without severe injury," Anstadt said. "But we're grateful no one was killed."
Police said Phillips fired twelve shots just outside the stadium on Oct. 7, leaving three injured including a Whitmer student. It happened not even 24 hours after Phillips fatally shot Johnathon Coleman, police said.
Toledo police detectives said Phillips was a suspect almost from the start.
"His name has always been around," Toledo Police Department Detective Lt. Dan Gerken said. "But once we got some concrete evidence, we met with the prosecutor's office and charged him."
It was only then that the U.S. Marshals made the arrest in Texas.
For Anstadt, receiving the news that Phillips was in custody was an electric moment.
"It was a little surreal for a few minutes and I wasn't even sure who to call first," said Anstadt.
But Anstadt said any excitement over the arrest will always be tempered by the damage Phillips has already caused.
"I wouldn't say it's a celebration, because not only do we have a student whose life will never be the same, but there's also people who lost their lives at the hands of this person," Anstadt said. "And so, it's hard to celebrate that."
Police say the investigation is far from over.
"There were two more people at least who we think were involved," Gerken said. "So if anyone from the community, that football game, wherever, we'll take that information and still follow up."
Gerken said Phillips is still in Texas at the moment but will have an extradition hearing sometime this week.
Anstadt says she reached out to the student victim after the arrest and she did not pick up her phone. But Anstadt hopes that she's having a good summer, far removed from the horrible events of last October.