On the evening of Friday, December 5, 2025, 27-year-old Johnie Deontae Thomas was shot in the Hartwell neighborhood of Cincinnati. Police were called to the 8000 block of Ferndale Avenue around 8:00 p.m. after reports of gunfire; first responders found Thomas with gunshot wounds. He was treated at the scene and taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, where he later died. The Hamilton County Coroner’s Office ruled the death a homicide.

No suspects were in custody in the days after the shooting, and detectives from the homicide unit continued to canvass the area and seek information to determine a motive and identify those responsible. Thomas, known to friends and family as 5 Mundo and remembered as an aspiring rapper, was memorialized by his community. Funeral arrangements were handled by J.C. Battle and Sons Funeral Home with a visitation scheduled later in the month.

If anyone in Hartwell that night saw activity on Ferndale Avenue or has information about the shooting, please share what is known with investigators.