By Marie McCain
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Albert

BATAVIA - Mark A. Albert told police he didn't know what was going through his mind when he saw Larry Colwell, but he didn't regret shooting him, according to documents released Wednesday.

Colwell, 40, of Union Township died Saturday after being shot once in the back of the head on the grounds of a private fishing club in Clermont County.

Albert, 42, of Anderson Township was indicted Wednesday on an aggravated murder charge. He told investigators he blamed Colwell for the breakup of his marriage.

He is being detained in lieu of $1 million bond in the Clermont County Jail. If convicted, he faces 23 years to life in prison.

In a 45-minute interview with investigators shortly after the shooting, an intoxicated Albert told police he'd been working on a house along Tealtown Road earlier in the day, according to records.

About 5 p.m., after many beers, the records show, Albert drove to his ex-wife Jodale's Miami Township home and talked with her about "custody of their daughter" and about Colwell.

According to court records, Albert admitted carrying a .38-caliber revolver into his ex-wife's house.

However, he told police the gun was meant only for protection because he "didn't know who was in her house with her."

He reportedly said his ex-wife told him Colwell had "run the limit on several of her credit cards and then told her he was leaving her."

Albert reportedly said he left his ex-wife's house at about 7 p.m. and drove to the Hamilton County Anglers Club in Union Township - where he served as the organization's secretary - intending to fish in the lake on club grounds.

Police said he told them that he "does not remember what he was thinking or what exactly occurred," but he retrieved his gun from his van and shot Colwell after he saw him at a campsite.

Albert, who has a felony conviction for domestic violence, told police he bought the gun "from someone downtown some time ago" and carried it with him to the fishing club because coyotes had been seen on the property, police reported.

As a convicted felon, he was not supposed to have a firearm, officials said.

After the shooting, witnesses told police Albert threw the gun into the lake and fled. He was arrested a short distance from the club. The gun has yet to be recovered.

Jodale Albert told investigators that she and her ex-husband did not discuss Colwell but did discuss Colwell's relatives. She told police that her ex-husband intended to "have them kicked out of the Anglers club."

She also told police that Albert "never made any threats about hurting anyone."

E-mail mmccain@enquirer.com