Columbus officer from Valley recovering after “ambush”

March 9, 2019 at 12:08a.m.

COLUMBUS

A Columbus police officer originally from the Mahoning Valley was shot during an ambush and is recovering in the hospital.

William Frease, originally from Poland, was shot in the face Thursday night in Columbus while working a patrol assignment in plain clothes. He is an 11-year veteran of the Columbus Police Department.

According to reports, six shots were fired through the back window of Frease’s car, with only one hitting him in the cheek area.

Other officers working with Frease detained three men who are considered suspects in Frease’s shooting.

The men were released after being questioned and have not been charged with any crimes as of Friday evening.

Frease graduated from Poland in 1995, according to his father, and served as a Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office auxiliary officer before leaving for Columbus.

During a recorded press conference Friday, CPD Acting Chief Tim Becker said the department hasn’t determined whether Frease was targeted.

Frease drove himself to safety after the shooting.