CINCINNATI, OH (FOX19) -
A security guard was found dead at a downtown hotel on Friday, which also happened to be his 58th birthday.
Homicide detectives were called to the Hilton Netherland Plaza in downtown Cincinnati early Friday morning.
They found Richard Campbell, 58, dead in an emergency staircase. Officers say Campbell had been stabbed.
He was first found by a fellow employee and hotel management called 911 around 6 a.m., and moments later, police and fire department first responders arrived.
Cincinnati Police Chief James Craig held a press conference on Friday, and said they are currently investigating to find out the specifics of the scene.
"Stab, some kind of stab. We don't know what instrument was used, sharp edged object. It's really too soon to know, but the coroner's office should be able to have that information," said Craig.
Craig says Campbell came into work on Friday morning, sometime around 5 a.m. and at some point reported in on his radio around the time of the stabbing.
"He made a radio transmission. We don't know if he specifically stated he needed help, just that he did transmit and referenced a level, maybe a floor where he was located. So, it hasn't been articulated that he was calling for help," said Craig.
Police are early in their investigation, but Chief Craig said there's no reason for the public to feel threatened.
Craig revealed that Friday was Campbell's 58th birthday, and he was well liked at the job he worked for eight years.
"He was loved by everyone, was enthusiastic about the work he performed for the hotel and for the guests. We also learned he was a Vietnam vet, served our country," he said.
A statement from hotel managing director, Michel Sheer, reads in part:
"This morning a member of our security staff was involved in a situation with an unknown person in an emergency staircase in the care tower complex...Our most sincere condolences go to the officer's family. His friends and colleagues here at the hotel are deeply saddened by this senseless loss."
Police say they're reviewing surveillance video and other evidence recovered from the scene in an effort to find Richard Campbell's killer.
If you know anything about his death, contact Cincinnati police.
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