Man Accused of Killing Cleveland Police Officer Also Allegedly Murdered His Grandmother Days Before: Prosecutors

Delawnte Hardy is charged with multiple counts of murder

An Ohio man is accused of murdering his grandmother days before allegedly killing a Cleveland police officer.

Delawnte Hardy, 24, was staying with his grandmother Beatrice Porter, 63, on June 28 in Garfield Heights, Ohio, when he stole her gun and shot her in the head, the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office alleges.

Prosecutors say Hardy then fled the scene on his grandfather’s bicycle. A family member found Porter the next morning and she was taken to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead days later.

Early on the morning of July 4, police received a call that Hardy was at a residence in Cleveland. Officers arrived on scene and placed a spotlight on the home, prosecutors say. Officer Jamieson Ritter began instructing Hardy over a loudspeaker, according to the prosecutor's office, which also alleged that Hardy tried to flee out the back door with the bicycle, the gun and two swords.

As officers tried to arrest Hardy, prosecutors allege that he fired four shots, one of which struck Ritter, who was pronounced dead after he was taken to the hospital.

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Hardy was subsequently indicted on three counts of aggravated murder, two counts of attempted aggravated murder, one count of murder, four counts of felonious assault, among several other lesser charges, according to a copy of the indictment reviewed by PEOPLE.

It is not immediately clear if Hardy has entered a plea or retained an attorney.

“In the course of a week, Delawnte Hardy caused unimaginable damage and grief to two families, our law enforcement community and our entire region,” Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley says in a statement. “My office will walk step by step with these two families to ensure justice is served. My thoughts and prayers remain with those grieving from this tragic situation.”

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