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UPDATE @ 12:45 p.m. (March 30):
The man who was shot by police on Interstate 75 was wanted for allegedly stabbing a man to death in Maryland earlier this month.
Police in Baltimore have charged Javier Pablo Aleman with murder in connection to the death of Victor Adolfo Castillo Serrano, who was found lying on his back at the bottom of a staircase at a home in the city March 17, according to a complaint filed by Baltimore Police.
Our media partners WCPO report, Serrano was Aleman’s landlord for several months and that Serrano rented out several rooms at the home, where he was found stabbed to death. Aleman had moved out of the home a few weeks before Serrano’s death, WCPO reported.
Investigators found Aleman, also known as ‘Cubano’, had visited Serrano’s workplace earlier in the day on the date Serrano was found deceased. Aleman said he was visiting the workplace to retrieve some of his items from the property, according to WCPO.
The visit was caught on surveillance video, according to Detective Donald Anderson.
In the complaint, Anderson wrote that investigators found several pieces of clothing at the scene that were “identical” to those Aleman was seen wearing, including a pair of sweatpants found in a trash can behind the house, a pullover and a puffy black jacket, which was under Serrano’s bed and had cuts in it matching the areas where Serrano was injured, WCPO reported.
Officers have not yet said what happened between Aleman between March 17 and Tuesday, when Glendale Police Officer Josh Hilling saw him walking along I-75 near Cincinnati and offered him a ride.
Police said Aleman had a knife in his possession at the time Hilling shot him during a confrontation, however it is not yet known if the knife was the same one allegedly used to kill Serrano.
Hilling shot Aleman one time, WCPO reported.
Baltimore police are working to extradite Aleman back to Maryland.
UPDATE @ 11:30 p.m. (March 29): Javier Pablo Aleman remains in stable condition at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. He will be detained there on an extradition warrant, according to Hamilton County Sheriff Jim Neil's office.
According to the sheriff’s office and the Glendale Police Department, Officer Joshua Hilling shot Aleman after a “very brief contact” on the berm of I-75 South about 1:30 p.m. Hilling was not injured in the incident, which shut down the southbound lanes from just below I-275 and slowed northbound traffic on I-75 for several hours.
Our news partner, WCPO-TV in Cincinnati, reported that police said they approached the man and asked if he needed a ride. He ignored the offer. At that point, Hilling got out of the police cruiser and exchanged words with the man before shots were fired.
Several witnesses told police dispatchers and 9-1-1 call takers about an officer seemingly involved in an apparent struggle, according to WCPO.com. Investigators found a knife near the scene. It measured eight to 12 inches in length. The investigation of the shooting is ongoing, according to the sheriff’s office.
According to the sheriff’s office, Aleman is not known to have any connection to the Cincinnati area.
Meantime, the Baltimore County Police Department Homicide Unit tonight obtained an arrest warrant for Aleman in a March 17 homicide in Baltimore County.
Police, sent to a home on a report of a cardiac arrest, found 51-year-old Victor Adolfo Serrano suffering from traumatic injuries. He died at the scene. The investigation led detectives to identify Aleman as the suspect responsible for the crime. The Baltimore County Police Homicide Unit is continuing to investigate that incident.
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