Columbus man arrested, charged with murder in I-670 'road rage' shooting

Shahid Meighan, Columbus Dispatch
Updated ·1 min read
6
Lights from Columbus police vehicles can be seen Friday night on I-670 eastbound near 4th Street in the area where police say a 'road rage' shooting left Bret A. Bennett, 52, of Grove City, dead. Columbus police on Tuesday announced that Tony E. Brock, 37, of Columbus' North Linden, was the driver of a black pickup truck who fired into Bennett's vehicle and killed him. Brock, who contacted police to acknowledge his responsibility, has been arrested and charged with murder, according to court records.

Bond has been set at $500,000 for a Columbus man charged with murder in connection with the fatal 'road rage' shooting that left a Grove City man dead and prompted an hours-long shutdown Friday of Interstate 670 near 4th Street, Downtown.

Tony E. Brock, 37, of Columbus' North Linden, is charged with the murder of Bret A. Bennett, 52, a Grove City man who owned a Columbus cigar shop.

According to an affidavit of probable cause, police were dispatched to an area on I-670 eastbound on a report of a shooting. Witnesses claim that they saw a person in a black Ford F-150 shoot into Bennett's maroon Subaru and flee. Bennett was "bleeding profusely," a 911 caller reported.

Medics arrived on scene to find Bennett suffering from a gunshot wound and transported him to OhioHealth Grant Medical Center, Downtown, where Bennett was pronounced dead at 5:26 p.m.

Authorities used cameras and license plate readers to locate Brock's black pickup truck at his residence on the 1300 block of Loretta Avenue, according to the affidavit.

Brock reached out to authorities through his attorney and admitted that he was the person who shot and killed Bennett, the affidavit states. Brock also told authorities where they could find the handgun that was used in the shooting, the document states.

Authorities collected the gun and other evidence and impounded the truck.

Brock was booked into the Franklin County Jail on the murder charge. His bond was set at $500,000 at a hearing Wednesday in Franklin County Municipal Court.

Anyone with information regarding the shooting is asked to call the Columbus police Homicide Unit at (614) 645-4730 or Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at (614) 461-TIPS (8477).

@ShahidMeighan

smeighan@dispatch.com

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus man connected to I-670 highway shooting charged with murder