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Barefield, 48, of the 800 block of Ninth Avenue, was found at 10:30 p.m. Friday in his red Buick Lucerne at the corner of Yankee Road and Ninth Avenue. He was transported to Atrium Medical Center and pronounced dead, according to Middletown police.
The 911 caller said he had been driving down the road when he observed Barefield driving with his headlights off.
“So I flashed (headlights at) him,” the man said. “Then I was calling him.”
The man said he saw Barefield’s car at the stop sign and he had been shot.
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The man told dispatchers he was trying to break out the window because Barefield’s vehicle was locked.
Middletown police did not respond to a request today from the news agency for a update on the investigation.
Barefield’s death was ruled a homicide and he suffered a gunshot to the chest, according to Doyle Burke, chief investigator for the Warren County Coroner’s Office, which is investigating since Barefield died in that county.
This morning, a large memorial with balloons, flowers, candles and a bottle of liquor sat at the corner were Barefield was shot.
Barefield was well known to police with 196 cases in Middletown Municipal Court dating back to 1993 for various violations, including driving infractions, disorderly conduct, tampering with evidence, domestic violence, menacing and drug charges, according to court records.
In 2011, Barefield was sentenced to 36 months in prison after being convicted of trafficking in cocaine.
But social media posts indicate Barefield had turned his life around and he was active in giving back to the community through donations to the Dream Center and the annual Easter Egg hunt.
Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Kristi Hughes at 513-425-7733.
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