The Fayette County Sheriff’s Office and the Coroner’s Office have released the identity of the shooting victim from Wednesday’s officer-involved shooting.
According to Fayette County Coroner, Dr. Dennis Mesker, the shooting victim was identified as 72-year-old Randall J. McKenzie currently of the Orient, Ohio area. McKenzie was recently identified as a suspect in a sexual assault of a juvenile. Fayette County Children’s Services initiated an investigation following a complaint to their agency. Subsequently, Fayette County Sheriff’s detectives were made aware of the allegations and began their phase of the investigation.
The sexual assault victim is a juvenile whose identity is being withheld.
Initial indications are that a person familiar with the allegations reported to the investigating detective that the suspect, Randall McKenzie, was in a red pickup truck in the area of a common drop off site of elementary students in the vicinity of Madison Mills, an unincorporated village along U.S. #62 and Madison Road near the Fayette and Madison County line. The detective responded to the area and did not locate McKenzie or his vehicle at the bus stop. Upon further checking of the area, the detective located the vehicle, occupied by McKenzie, on Rockwell Road.
Upon exiting his vehicle, McKenzie displayed a firearm, pointed it at the detective, and failed to drop the weapon after multiple commands to do so. The series of events following the initial confrontation are the subject of the investigation being conducted by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
