Police need help to ID person of interest in worker's fatal shooting

Cincinnati police are asking for the public's help in identifying a person of interest in last month's killing of Nicholas Kernan, a landscaper shot while he was on the job in Corryville.

The man is recorded on video walking and running through the Corryville area on the day of the incident. He was wearing an olive-colored hoodie, a black face mask and shorts.

Capt. Steve Saunders described him as being between 5-foot-8 and 5-foot-10 and weighing between 140 and 160 lbs.

Saunders stopped short of labeling the man a suspect in the investigation, noting investigators simply want to talk with him.

Kernan, 43, was found shot in the 2900 block of Bellevue Avenue just after 3 p.m. on May 23, officials said. He was taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center where he died.

He was outside a property working on landscaping and cleaning up when the shooter approached him, Uptown Rental Properties President and CEO Dan Schimberg previously told The Enquirer.

Saunders said it's too early to say whether police believe the shooting was targeted or random, as Kernan's family and coworkers have described the incident.

"Obviously, it's a very heinous act," Saunders said.

Uptown Rental Properties is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. Crime Stoppers is also offering a $2,500 reward, Saunders said.

The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040 or the Cincinnati Police Department's homicide unit at 513-352-3542.