Norfolk, Va. - So far this year, Norfolk has been the deadliest city in Hampton Roads with the most number of murders, 33 to be exact. Nearly half of them are still unsolved.
"Just please pick up the phone," said Kimberly Bose, the mother of murdered Hampton University Student Joseph Bose. Her son's case is one of 15 that is still unsolved in the city of Norfolk. Norfolk police say detectives are working tirelessly to solve them.
"We do have an entire homicide unit as well as liaison units working around the clock to help solve these cases," said Norfolk Police Spokesperson Melinda Wray.
She says it's hard to solve these cases without the public's help.
"We can't do it alone," Wray added. "It's not possible. We have to have the public's help. We have to have those calls come in, those tips, every little bit helps."
She says Joseph Bose's murder is a perfect example.
"Twelve people saw something that night. The people there heard something that night. The gunshots aren't silent, they echo," she said. "But we didn't receive one phone call. Not one lead. That is just mind blowing."
Wray says that's what detectives have run into with 7 of their unsolved murders this year.
NewsChannel 3 looked at the numbers:
- Chesapeake
- 2014 – 11 murders
- 2015 – 12 murders
- 8 unsolved
- Hampton
- 2014 – 10 murders
- 2015 – 15 murders
- 5 unsolved
- Newport News
- 2014 – 26 murders
- 2015 – 25 murders
- 14 unsolved
- Norfolk
- 2014 – 30 murders
- 2015 – 33 murders
- 14 unsolved
- Virginia Beach
- 2014 – 18 murders
- 2015- 19 murders
- 1 unsolved
- Suffolk
- 2014 – 3 murders
- 2015 – 2 murders
- 1 unsolved
- Portsmouth
- 2014 – 11 murders
- 2015 – 25 murders
- 9 unsolved
The Norfolk Police Chief is scheduled to hold a news conference Wednesday to address the city's murder rates and talk about the unsolved crimes. NewsChannel 3 plans to be there.
If you have any information on any murder you can remain anonymous by calling the Crime Line at 1 (888) LOCK-U-UP.
