Leslie Reffit

Leslie L. Reffit was a 31-year-old man who was deeply connected to his family. He was the son of Larry and Mary Reffit and a brother to Laurie, Larry Jr., and Lonnie. Leslie was also a loving father to his two sons, Wesley and Andrew, and two daughters, Katlyn and Emily. At the time of his death, he was engaged to be married to his fiancée, Brittany Gibson. Remembered by many family members and friends, his life was cut short, leaving a void in the lives of those who knew and loved him.

On the evening of Saturday, September 15, 2007, the Cincinnati Police Department received a call reporting a person shot in the city's Roselawn neighborhood. Officers and paramedics were dispatched around 8:50 p.m. to the 2000 block of Seymour Avenue, near Roselawn Park. Upon their arrival, they discovered Leslie Reffit suffering from a gunshot wound. Despite the efforts of first responders, he was pronounced dead at the scene. The incident marked another homicide in a year that saw dozens of such cases across Cincinnati.

The Cincinnati Police Department's Homicide Unit immediately took charge of the investigation into Leslie's death. Detectives began processing the scene and searching for any information that could lead to the person or persons responsible for the shooting. In the years that followed, however, the case grew cold, with no arrests made and no primary suspects publicly identified. The lack of resolution left Leslie’s family with unanswered questions and a sense of justice unfulfilled.

As time passed, Leslie Reffit's case was added to Ohio's list of unsolved homicides. The Ohio Attorney General's Office and the Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) have featured his case in their public appeals for information, hoping to generate new leads that might finally provide a breakthrough. These cold case initiatives aim to bring renewed attention to unresolved crimes, leveraging public memory and the possibility that someone, somewhere, holds a critical piece of information. The case remains open and active, awaiting the tip that could solve the mystery of who killed Leslie and why.

Following his death, Leslie's family held a visitation and funeral service on September 21, 2007. He was later laid to rest at Batavia Union Cemetery. His mother, Mary, passed away in 2023, never seeing justice for her son. The enduring pain of his unsolved murder continues to be felt by his children, siblings, and all who cared for him.

The investigation into the homicide of Leslie Reffit is ongoing. Law enforcement continues to ask for the public's help. Anyone with information about the shooting that occurred on Seymour Avenue on that September evening is urged to contact the Cincinnati Police Department's Criminal Investigation Section at 513-352-3542 or to leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040. A call could provide the missing link needed to bring closure to his loved ones and deliver the justice Leslie has been denied for so long.