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Months After Ohio Woman Found Killed In Her Apartment, A Suspect Is Arrested
Kirby Cheong is alleged to have assaulted and fatally shot Katherine Lobono last year.
A wanted Ohio man was arrested late last week in connection to the death of a young woman who was found fatally shot in her home in October.
The U.S. Marshals Southern Ohio Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team (SOFAST) took Kirby Cheong, 30, into custody in Miamisburg on Thursday morning, the U.S. Marshals Service said in a press release last week. Cheong is alleged to have been the perpetrator in an October 1, 2019 assault that took place in Fairfield, Ohio; the victim, a woman whose name was not shared by the agency, was shot numerous times and her injuries proved fatal.
The victim has been identified as 23-year-old Katherine Lobono, who was found dead on the floor of her apartment, the Journal-News reports. She was shot three times and sustained other injuries to her body, including ligature marks suggesting injury to her neck, bruises on her right knee, and what appeared to be a bite mark on her right forearm, according to the outlet.
Two men who were watching Lobono’s dogs discovered that she’d been killed and called 911 when they traveled to her home in the afternoon to return her keys, WKRC reports. A neighbor also reported hearing banging coming from the apartment the night before, but did not see anything.
Following Lobono's death, authorities issued an arrest warrant for Cheong, the U.S. Marshals Service said. On Thursday, the U.S. Marshals SOFAST, with the help of the Fairfield Police Department, arrested Cheong without incident. He is currently in custody at the Butler County Sheriff's Office; he faces charges of murder, felonious assault, and tampering with evidence, online jail records show.
Cheong’s arraignment is scheduled to take place at the Butler County Common Pleas Court on Tuesday morning, according to the Journal-News.
Lobono worked at Sport Clips and could do a “mean fade,” her mother told FOX19 last month. She remembered her daughter as “an outgoing, athletic, Jesus lover, who was unapologetically herself.”
Following Cheong’s arrest, Lobono’s family stated that they were “relieved” in a statement obtained by the outlet.
“Our family is relieved that this person is now in custody and the wheels of justice are in motion to make sure that he pays for what he did and he can never do this to anyone else again,” their statement reads, in part. “We are praying for not only our family’s and community’s healing, but for his family also - they have been through a lot.”
