An elderly Ohio man has been charged with murder in connection to the shooting of an Uber driver in late March which law enforcement believe was prompted by a phone scam, CBS News reported.
The Clark County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that 81-year-old William Brock of South Charleston, Ohio was charged with murder in the shooting death of Loletha Hall outside of his home on March 25.
Sheriff’s deputies responded to a 911 call and arrived at the scene to find Hall shot multiple times. Brock, who made the call, had injuries to his head and ear.
Hall was taken to a hospital in Dayton where she was later pronounced dead.
According to the sheriff’s office, earlier that day, Brock received a phone call from a man who told him that he would have to pay $12,000 if he wanted to get his nephew out of jail. The unknown caller allegedly threatened Brock and his nephew if he failed to pay.
The same caller, or possibly an accomplice using the same phone, then ordered a package pick-up on the Uber app, listing Brock’s address as the pick-up point. Lolethal Hall was the Uber driver who took the order.
When she arrived at Brock’s home, Hall asked for the package she had been sent to retrieve, unaware of the threatening call Brock received. The 81-year-old met Hall with a pistol and demanded that she give him the name of the unknown caller, according to the sheriff’s office.
When Hall tried to leave, Brock took her cell phone and refused to let her go. Hall dashed for her vehicle and Brock shot her. The two then got into an altercation at Hall’s car that ended when Brock shot her two more times.
Afterward, Brock made the call to 911.
Court records show that Brock pleaded not guilty to murder. His bail was set at $200,000.
The sheriff’s office said it was considering filing additional charges.
