One charge dismissed against third suspect in Lexington homicide investigation
A Lexington judge on Tuesday dismissed one of two charges against a man accused of involvement in a homicide earlier this year.
Jeffrey Ollie, 22, was originally charged with complicity to murder and tampering with physical evidence in connection with a shooting that happened Jan. 19.
But Tuesday morning, Fayette District Judge Lindsay Hughes Thurston dismissed the tampering charge and said there wasn’t evidence for it to stick until further investigation was completed.
Ollie is the third suspect linked to a January homicide that left 27-year-old Daievyon Elliott dead. Elliott was found shot inside a vehicle in the back parking lot of a residence on Fairmont Court, police previously said.
The other suspects charged in the case are 21-year-old Brooklyn Trigg and 22-year-old Darrion Saliford. Trigg is charged with complicity to murder and tampering with physical evidence, while Saliford is charged with complicity to murder, tampering with physical evidence and possession of a handgun by a convicted felon.
Elliott was shot on both sides of his body, and two different sets of shell casings were found at the scene, indicating multiple shooters were involved. No firearms have been recovered, according to police.
Court documents say Trigg and another witness were inside the vehicle when the shooting occurred. Cell phone and electronic monitoring data put Ollie and Saliford at the scene when the shooting occurred, and Ollie confirmed to investigators he and Saliford were together in the area of the homicide afterward.
Lexington Police Department Detective Nicholas Music said Ollie was charged because police say Ollie drove Saliford to the area of the shooting. Music testified cell phone data and video surveillance footage showed Ollie was nearby when the shooting occurred.
Music said the tampering charge was filed because police had not recovered any firearms, which left investigators under the impression Ollie had helped discard weapons.
Grundy argued since there was no evidence, police could not say that his client had in fact tampered with it.
“I know determining probable cause is a low standard, but is it this low?” Grundy asked. “This is someone getting charged with a serious crime simply because he is in the area.”
While Thurston agreed there was probable cause to send Ollie’s complicity to murder charge before a grand jury, she said she wasn’t convinced on the tampering charge, which she dismissed.
Thurston said she would take Grundy’s request to lower Ollie’s bond “under advisement,” and would make a decision later Tuesday.
Ollie, Saliford and Trigg are all being held at the Fayette County jail on a $750,000 bond, according to jail records.
Ollie’s family declined to speak with media following the hearing.
