Post by Scumhunter on Aug 19, 2019 2:23:31 GMT -5
(Above photo credit: ktvu.com)
From The San Francisco Chronicle (sfchronicle.com):
Dozens of community members interlaced fingers and cupped hands with uniformed police officers Wednesday, forming a circle in the roadway at Baker and Grove streets in San Francisco to honor 17-year-old Aubrey Abrakasa, who was shot to death on the same intersection in August 2006.
Abrakasa’s death remains unsolved, and his mother, Paulette Brown, returns to the spot with loved ones and San Francisco police officers annually on the day and time of her son’s slaying to keep his memory alive, and to plead with the community to help solve the case.
He was shot to death after stepping out of his nearby home near an unknown assailant armed with an automatic firearm. He was struck by several of the roughly 30 rounds that were fired before the shooter fled the scene.
“I suffer in my mind every day. Mothers suffer in their minds every day,” Brown, holding a megaphone, told the crowd. “I just thank you guys for coming out. I am so happy. I can sleep tonight.”
When Brown’s voice trembled, Toney Chaplin, assistant San Francisco police chief, immediately broke from the circle and bounded toward her, pulling her into an embrace. Loved ones soon followed, taking turns hugging Brown in the middle of the street.
“I love my boy,” Brown sobbed into the megaphone, still surrounded by Chaplin and others. “My son laid here in this street, saving people’s lives, and they took his life from us. They say he was a hero. Where is the hero for me? I need something done.”
Brown told The Chronicle that her son died trying to warn others of the gunman. He was not the intended target, Brown said.
Abrakasa, who was set to be a senior at Raoul Wallenberg Traditional High School when he died, was hardworking and was well-liked by his peers and his coworkers at the Bernal Heights Recreation Center, where he worked several hours a day, Brown said.
“He was a good boy. They took him from us. They took him from the community,” Brown said. “I want him back, but I know I can’t have him back. But he lives through us today. And I hope the people who did this to him are watching, and I hope they’ll have a change of heart after seeing what they’ve done to families.”
During the ceremony, Brown joined half a dozen others in a drum semicircle.
On the lapel of her polka-dot blouse hung a plastic-covered photo of her son, his lips spread into a broad smile. She carries that photograph every day, said Abrakasa’s sister, Serina Bridges-Abrakasa.
“She has his picture everywhere he goes,” Bridges-Abrakasa said. “We don’t really show that we’re stressed out, but inside, we’re hurting. I just want closure for my mom.”
On August 14, 2006, Bridges-Abrakasa, now 24, said she vividly remembers saying goodbye to her older brother before she and her sister left for Camp Mendocino. Like many older brothers, she said she remembers her mom lovingly nudging Abrakasa to hug and kiss his sisters, telling the girls that he loves them, before they departed to camp.
“That was not the first time he’s said it, but I felt like he meant it. It was almost like something was going to happen. And he passed away that day,” Bridges-Abrakasa said, her eyes cast toward the sidewalk on Baker Street. “That always stuck with me. Ever since then, I tell my mom I love her every day. We never go a whole day without saying it. You never know when is the last time you’ll see your family member.”
Now 13 years later, Bridges-Abrakasa said she hopes the annual gathering encourages witnesses to come forward with information about the shooting. She said she nearly cried while staring out into the massive circle of citizens and law enforcement officers blocking traffic in the Panhandle neighborhood. It was the largest turnout in years, she said.
Anyone with information about Abrakasa’s fatal shooting is asked to call San Francisco police’s homicide unit at 415-575-4444 or can text a tip to TIP411 by beginning the text with “SFPD.” Callers may remain anonymous.
www.sfchronicle.com/crime/article/Family-of-slain-San-Francisco-teen-ask-for-help-14305504.php
Local news segment: www.ktvu.com/news/ktvu-local-news/police-family-seek-answers-in-2006-unsolved-murder-of-san-francisco-teen
Thoughts? What an absolutely tragic and heartbreaking case. I hope Aubrey's loved ones can one day have justice delivered even if it has been way overdue
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