JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 22-year-old man died early Thursday after police said his neighbor shot him, but that person has not been charged with a crime.
Keegan Von Roberts died after a shooting just after midnight on Peach Street, south of Beach Boulevard. Police said it happened when an ongoing dispute escalated. Homicide detectives questioned the man they believe fired the shot and later released him. They said the case has been referred to the State Attorney's Office.
Roberts' in-laws told News4Jax that he had just come home. Within a few minutes, a woman who lives nearby said she heard gunfire.
"Pop, pop. A pause, and then another one," she said. "It's upsetting about knowing who they are because they are both really nice families."
Roberts’ family told News4Jax that the neighbor who shot him had threatened Roberts before. They described Roberts as a hard-working family man and they don't know why he was shot.
Crime and safety analyst Gil Smith said police may have found the most important clues immediately after the shooting.
"Mostly, police will rely on the physical evidence. That will determine to them how this crime actually happened," Smith said.
While police have passed the case onto the State Attorney's office, there remains a painful loss. Roberts was a husband and father. He had one young child and a new baby on the way.
While police have not named the shooter, the Roberts family know exactly who it is because he lives directly across the street.
According to News4Jax records, there have been five other homicide cases this year where police turned the case over to prosecutors to determine whether or not a crime was committed.
The most recent was just last month, when a man was shot at a Southside apartment complex. Police said a woman shot her ex-boyfriend as he was breaking into her apartment home. She has not been charged.
