Olmsted Township hit-skip victim dies of injuries on his 13th birthday

OLMSTED TOWNSHIP, Ohio - A 13-year-old Olmsted Township boy hit by a car Monday night died Tuesday just a police were following a major lead in the hit-skip case.

Olmsted Township Police Chief John Minek confirmed that Charles Kho Jr. died at 3 p.m. Tuesday. He was walking along Cook Road with some of his friends around 7 p.m. Monday when he was hit.

Acting on a tip, police towed a maroon Sable from the Ganley Body Shop in Middleburg Heights Tuesday.

Minek said the person who dropped off the car was acting suspicious and kept talking about not knowing how the vehicle had become damaged. Minek said detectives immediately followed up on the lead.

"They were able to match a couple of the pieces from the vehicle and we got a positive match. And we're in the process now of obtaining a search warrant and processing the vehicle for evidentiary purposes," he said.

Police are still trying to locate the driver of the car.

Charleen Walker, a close family friend, said Kho was "an awesome boy." Tuesday was Kho's 13th birthday.

Kho's family released the following statement on Thursday:

Thank you to the Olmsted Falls and Township community and the parish of St. Adalbert's for your outpouring of support. It is greatly appreciated.

We've made the decision to donate Charlie's organs. This week is Charlie's 13th birthday and we are confident that he would want this gift to be given to others. We are grateful for the support provided by the staff at Lifebanc and MetroHealth.

The Kho family has established the Charlie Kho Memorial Fund through Fifth Third Bank and donations can be made to the fund through any local branch. The fund will be used to cover funeral expenses and medical bills.

Calling hours for Charlie will be on Friday, October 28 from 6 to 9 p.m. at St. Adalberts and the funeral mass will also be at St. Adalbert's at 10 a.m. on Saturday, October 29.

This is an extremely difficult and tragic time for our family. We ask that you respect our privacy and allow us an opportunity to grieve.