JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – In the evening hours of an early November Wednesday two years ago, shots rang out in the parking lot of an Arlington apartment complex.
The gunfire led to a 911 call that brought police to the Caroline Village Apartments.
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When the officers arrived, they found a young man lying outside his car. He’d been shot multiple times. They tried to save him, but he died at the hospital not long after.
That man was 23-year-old Gabriel Devoe, the cousin of Morning Show News and Traffic Anchor Amanda DeVoe.
He was just a month away from his college graduation.
His mother, Rose Devoe, still wants answers. And so do investigators with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
Detectives put out a notice Tuesday, more than two years after the deadly shooting. They’re out of leads.
Investigators said they’ve vetted the evidence they have and they’ve interviewed witnesses. But the case remains unsolved.
JSO put the call out to the community to come forward with any information about the murder.
Earlier this year, Gabriel’s mother, Rose Devoe, shared her own plea to the community. She put up a billboard at the intersection of Merrill Road and Cesery Boulevard in Arlington, asking for information about her son’s killing.
Rose told News4JAX that the billboard is a painful reminder.
“When I put this billboard up, I had to remind myself that I’m going to drive past this billboard and I’m going to see my son’s picture with the caption above his face that says, ‘Help solve my murder.’ That is not easy. Mothers need to know that’s not easy,” she said.
The billboard was less than half a mile from where Gabriel was killed, and just a few miles from where he grew up.
For Rose, just being in the parking lot where the sign stands can be too much to bear.
“There are some days that I feel so nauseated and the pain is debilitating. Sometimes, I get to the red light, and I have to stop and breathe because it’s unbelievable. It’s surreal,” she said.
The reward for information in Gabriel Devoe’s murder now stands at $25,000. To be eligible for the reward, you can contact CrimeStoppers anonymously at 1-866-845-TIPS or **8477.
You can also share information directly with the Sheriff’s Office at 904-630-0500 or email JSOCrimeTips@jaxsheriff.org.
Rose Devoe has gone door-to-door -- along with MAD DADS and what she calls “Gabriel’s Tribe” -- at Caroline Village Apartments where he was killed.
“I vowed on the day that someone decided to murder my son, that my life plan changed and I am walking that destiny right now and it is everything that I can do to fight for justice for Gabriel,” Rose said.