A community wants answers after a man fatally shot a 13-year-old Black middle school student whom he suspected of breaking into cars in a Washington, D.C., neighborhood.
According to the Metropolitan Police, Karon Blake of Northeast Washington was killed on Saturday.
Officers responded to a report of a shooting shortly before 4 a.m. in Northeast DC Saturday and discovered Blake with apparent gunshot wounds. According to officials, the teenager was taken to a hospital and died despite life-saving efforts.
Detectives at the scene determined that a man who resides in the neighborhood said he had “heard noises and observed someone that appeared to be tampering with vehicles.”
The unidentified man went outside with a registered firearm to investigate, and he had an “interaction” with the teenager. “During the interaction, the male resident discharged his firearm, striking the victim,” police said.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington, D.C, the investigation into Blake’s death is still ongoing.
“As with any pending matter, it would be improper and imprudent to comment any further at this time. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia is committed to thoroughly investigating this matter,” the office told ABC News.
The search for answers has intensified, with local lawmakers condemning the shooting and demanding that the identity of the shooter be made public.
“Property is not greater than life. Karon should be alive today,” D.C. Council member Christina Henderson tweeted Monday.
“He was a son, brother, friend and student who should still be here. I am deeply saddened and outraged by Karon’s killing,”Ward 5 council member Zachary Parker said in a statement Monday.
“No car or material possession is worth a life — under any circumstances. I join Ward 5 residents in calling on the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to hold accountable the individual who took Karon’s life,” he continued.
Residents in attendance at a community meeting on Tuesday questioned why the shooter had not been arrested — or at the very least identified publicly.
Karon Blake attended Brookland Middle School, NBC News reports. According to school Principal Kerry Richardson, he is survived by his mother and three younger siblings.