COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The man accused of killing Imam Mohamed Hassan Adam was in court for the first time, Monday.
During his initial arraignment in a Franklin County courtroom, John Wesley Wooden, Jr., was given a $2 million surety bond.
Wooden, Jr., 46, is accused of shooting and killing the 48-year-old local Somali community leader on or about Dec. 22, according to records from the Franklin County Municipal Court.
During a news conference Friday, police said it appears at some point Wooden and Adam were involved in a business transaction, but they wouldn’t elaborate any details.
According to police, after identifying Wooden as a suspect in Adam’s death, they issued a search warrant for Wooden’s residence, where a gun was found that was a ballistic match in Adam’s case.
Adam was originally reported missing Dec. 22 and his body was found inside a van off Joyce and Windsor avenues Dec. 24.
Wooden, who was arrested on Feb. 18, is also facing federal charges for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
His preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 4.