Malik Amar

Malik Amar, a 43-year-old Black man from Columbus, Ohio, was a beloved family member whose life was cut short on January 6, 2021. One person who knew him wrote, "We loved Malik like family... You will be truly missed but never forgotten." A cousin also mourned his loss after he was gunned down.

In the early morning hours of January 6, Columbus Police officers on patrol in a southeast neighborhood spotted a suspicious vehicle on Fairwood Avenue. It was just before 1:30 a.m. Near the car, officers discovered two men who had been shot. One man was on the sidewalk, and the other was slumped over the front seats of the vehicle. Both had suffered fatal gunshot wounds to the head. One of the victims was identified as Malik Amar, who was pronounced dead at the scene. The other man was 48-year-old David Knox.

The investigation quickly led police to a suspect. That same afternoon, authorities filed a warrant for the arrest of 40-year-old Ash Shaheed Abdullah Ibn Jamii, charging him with two counts of murder. The case against him was built in large part on the testimony of a juvenile female witness who was with the men that night. She told investigators that a dispute had occurred earlier between Amar and Jamii at Jamii’s apartment. She later fled from a car just before Jamii shot and killed Amar and Knox.

Ash Shaheed Abdullah Ibn Jamii was arrested on January 8, 2021. He was subsequently tried and convicted for the murders of Malik Amar and David Knox. In June 2021, a judge sentenced Jamii to serve 62 years to life in prison for the killings.