ELYRIA, Ohio — The Lorain County Sheriff's Office has released the identity of the motorcyclist shot and killed Tuesday night in Elyria, as well as the identity of the man accused of shooting him.
The new information comes the day after multiple motorcyclists in Lorain County reported being targeted by a gunman.
Capt. Robert Vansant Jr. of the Lorain County Sheriff's Office told 3News that 24-year-old Isaiah Makuch, of Elyria, was arrested Tuesday evening in connection to the three incidents, one of which killed Trey Sukey.
Makuch was arraigned on Wednesday morning at the Elyria Municipal Court. A $1 million bond was for the two charges that Makuch is facing. He is also not allowed to be in possession of any weapons.
A friend of the victim, John Novak, represented Sukey's family during the hearing.
"He knew what he was doing, there is no insanity here...," said Novak. He knew what he was doing. This was planned in his head."
Novak also spoke on the Sukey's charachter.
"Trey Sukey had the biggest, warmest, softest loving heart in this world. He was raised right. All that he wanted to do was right. He moved out of Detroit to Lorain County to be away from this type of thing, so that he could start a new life with and be around better people in an area with less crime."
The full court appearance can be watched below:
They report that the first two incidents, which happened in Lorain, came into the Amherst Police Department at about 5:19 p.m. and 6:02 p.m.
In the first incident, a couple on a motorcycle reported that a man in a vehicle pointed a handgun at them in the area of North Leavitt Rd. and Cooper Foster Park Rd.
In the second incident -- about a half mile away –- another motorcyclist reported that a man fired a gun at him, hitting his bike and his backpack, in the area of North Leavitt Rd. and State Route 2.
Then at about 6:18 p.m., the Lorain County Sheriff's Office was called to Lake Ave and Emerson Ct., about five miles away in Elyria, where 30-year-old Sukey was shot on his motorcycle.
Sukey was transported to University Hospitals Elyria, where he was pronounced dead.
“It's concerning," Vansant said. "Everybody was enjoying the beautiful day that we had yesterday here in Northeast Ohio, and unfortunately, this victim was just going about his day, enjoying a motorcycle ride and this happens to him. It's unfortunate for the community, unfortunate for his family."
Vansant said police caught up with Mukuch at a relative’s house in Elyria at around 6:30 p.m., where he was arrested.
“So this wasn't a road rage incident or anything like that," he explained. "We're pretty confident of that. It would appear from talking with family members and our suspect, he was going through some type of episode, and he had some mental illnesses that he's been struggling with, and for some reason, these motorcycles in general were a trigger for him with his illness. That's what caused him to lash out the way he did.”
On Wednesday morning, Makuch was formally charged with aggravated murder and discharging a firearm on or near prohibited premises.
