Investigators are asking the public for help Wednesday in identifying whoever gunned down a 14-year-old boy in the Florence-Firestone area of unincorporated Los Angeles more than a year ago.
On July 3, 2020, Otis Rayjon Williams was walking to the store when a car pulled up at the mouth of an alley south of 98th Street, between Central Avenue and Pace Avenue.
Someone in the driver’s seat of the vehicle, described as possibly a 2015 to 2018 Dodge Challenger, fired several shots at Williams, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Lt. Derrick Alfred said during a morning news conference.
Williams was pronounced dead at the scene.
The boy’s mother, Francine Brazil, said her son was struck in the chest three times.
“I just want to know why … he was only 14,” Brazil said during the news conference.
After the shooting, the Challenger fled west on 98th Street, then north of South Central Avenue and out of view, according to the Sheriff’s Department.
The vehicle was blue in color with one black stripe on the hood between two air scoops. It also had a black roof, trunk, spoiler and gas cap, according to investigators.
The car was missing its front license plate.
It was unclear if anyone was inside the vehicle with the driver, but authorities released surveillance video of the incident in hopes of finding the shooter.
Alfred said it’s possible that the gunman mistook Williams for an adult, as the teenager stood over 6-feet tall.
For Brazil though, Williams was the youngest of her children and still her baby. He had just turned 14 two months before he was gunned down.
“He was my little buddy. Now he’s gone,” she said.
Brazil pleaded for anyone with information to come forward.
Detectives believe there are additional witnesses and are asking anyone with information to contact the Sheriff’s Department at 323-890-5500. Anonymous tips can be provided to Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.