Crime Stoppers: Family, Police Seek Justice In Aspiring Rapper's Murder
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - It's been nine months since a man was shot and killed while sitting outside with some friends in Homewood.
The murder has police baffled as they search for the killer and a motive.
Raekwon Epps, 20, loved music. His family said he had hopes of one day becoming a rapper. But his dreams abruptly ended one night last August when he was fatally shot in the 800 block of Brushton Avenue.
He was with some friends when he was gunned down, but Pittsburgh Homicide Det. James McGee said, "Everybody [he was with] heard gunshots that night, but nobody saw anything."
The victim's mother, Lisa Epps, told KDKA-TV's Ralph Iannotti, "I think a lot of people know something, a lot, but a lot of people won't speak up because they're afraid."
Trying to hold back tears, Epps' mother said, "I just want justice for my son."
Det. McGee said when Epps was killed, he was sitting near an empty lot. His friends were around him and "a gunman came up, pointed a gun at Mr. Epps, and shot and killed him," said Det. McGee.
Join The Conversation On The KDKA Facebook Page
Stay Up To Date, Follow KDKA On Twitter
Rosalind Epps, the victim's stepmother, said, "On May 6, Raekwon would have celebrated his 21st birthday. Now, we have to go to the cemetery to visit him."
The Pittsburgh Crime Stoppers number is 412-255-8477.
Information leading to an arrest and conviction is worth up to $1,000.