MOUNT HEALTHY, Ohio —

A little before noon Sunday, an apartment on Lakenoll Drive became the scene of what Mt. Healthy police Chief Vince Demasi believes was a murder-suicide.

The situation began when two officers tried to resolve a custody issue by getting Eric Johnson to return his 6-year-old daughter, Iyla, back to her mother.

"During the exchange, the officers heard what they believed to be a gunshot coming from the second floor," Demasi said. "Officers responded up (and) found that the door itself had been barricaded. Additional shots rang out at the officers, at which point they retreated."

What followed was an hourslong SWAT standoff that had neighbor Andrew Dawson praying for a positive outcome.

"That's the most important thing that any of us could do is lean on, trust God," Dawson said.

As minutes passed, Dawson described the desperation onlookers felt.

"The family, all the family was here. They couldn't, they couldn't get passed up where I live. They couldn't get passed there. Everything was roped off," Dawson said. "You had witnesses all over, SWAT, you had people here that was upset."

Upset turned to sadness when police discovered that Eric Johnson and his young daughter, Iyla, were dead from gunshot wounds.

While waiting for the coroner to make an official determination as to what happened, Demasi said Eric Johnson should not have had a gun.

"Mr. Johnson has a long felony criminal record and is obviously an individual that – number one, shouldn’t be out and about on our streets. And number two – definitely should not be in possession of a firearm," Demasi said. "But, unfortunately, he was."

Dawson said he thought police did a "really good job" during Sunday's incident by trying to resolve the ordeal without anyone getting hurt.

CINCINNATI — Three years after a homicide in Over-the-Rhine, a family finally has some answers.

Eric Johnson, 23, was charged Monday for his alleged involvement in the death of 21-year-old Thomas Maul Jr. in 2018.

Maul’s family said they never gave up hope; they knew justice would come.

“I just miss him,” Thomas Maul Jr.’s aunt, Eunice Maul, said. ”We fought really hard. I want to thank that detective.”

Police believe Johnson was the man who pulled the trigger, killing Maul in the courtyard of the apartment complex in the 200 block of East Clifton Avenue a little over three years ago.

“It still hurts. It hurts,” Eunice said. “We’re happy in our hearts that it happened. That they caught him. He’s behind bars. He’s no longer out here living his best life when my nephew isn’t.”

For Maul’s father, Thomas Sr., the arrest doesn’t bring closure – instead he chooses to focus on the son he loved.

“Thomas was a wonderful kid,” he said. “Always playing little jokes on everyone. Kept everyone with a smile on their face. He had one of the best smiles you’ve ever seen. He was a very helpful child. Helpful son."

The family held pictures of Thomas Maul Jr. close to their hearts so they would never forget him.

“We were brought up to stick together as brothers and sisters,” Thomas Sr. said. “That’s how our mom and dad raised us. We just miss him. We never stopped fighting for him."

In 2019, the family offered a $10,000 reward for information that would lead to the arrest and conviction of the person who shot Thomas Maul Jr.

Johnson is currently being held in the Hamilton County Jail and is awaiting his first court appearance.