Portsmouth, Va. - A man was found shot to death in the Stoneridge apartment complex in Portsmouth on November 1st. Now two weeks later, his killer has still not been caught.
Police say the call came in reporting gunshots in the complex just after 9:30 p.m.
When they arrived on scene they located 21-year-old James B. Freeman behind a dumpster on Hightower Rd. with gun shot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police have not identified the victim and the investigation is ongoing.
James' brother Mark prays that his pain and anger will soon go away and that someone will step forward to give his family closure.
"A lot of people know what's going on but they're scared to open their mouth for some reason. And that doesn't make you a punk or a snitch or anything like that. It makes you a good person to help a family gain closure to a senseless act that took away a loved one," he says.
What Mark says he'll miss the most is his younger brother's ability to make him laugh.
"That's just what he did. He loved to make people laugh, loved to make people smile," he says.
James' outstanding personality made a lasting impression on many people in Portsmouth, including one person that always saw him at the Food Lion where he worked.
Dentist Richard Sweeney works right across the street. He says James was the type of person who would always make you smile. And for a dentist, he says it's hard for a smile to make a lasting impression.
"Everyone just flocked to him. He was just a silly guy and the world needs more silly, genuine human beings," he says.
But he says the world lost one two weeks ago and hopes people don't speculate about his murder.
"You hear someone gets murdered, you assume something bad, someone in the stereotype. And then once you hear the name of the person you say, oh no, absolutely not. There is not a single bad side to him," Sweeney says.
Police still haven't made any arrests so if you have any information, Take Action Against Crime and call the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.
