In the early morning hours of July 18, 2014, a burst of gunfire shattered the quiet at the intersection of Sycamore Street and Jefferson Avenue on Buffalo's East Side. When the sounds faded, 29-year-old Tyneisha Pettiford, a Black female, and her companion, 37-year-old Shamel Parker, were left fatally wounded inside her Infiniti. Several shots had been fired into the vehicle, striking both occupants.
After the shooting, the car moved forward, striking a parked SUV in a nearby driveway.
Police were on the scene around 2:15 a.m. and found both Pettiford and Parker deceased. Investigators believed the attack was not a random act of violence, though they did not immediately release a motive or specify who the intended target might have been. At the time, it was reported that Pettiford was pregnant. The couple, both residents of Buffalo, were described as being in a relationship.
In the immediate aftermath, homicide detectives began an investigation into the double homicide. They appealed to the public for any information that could lead to the identity of the person or persons responsible for the shooting. As of early 2015, the case was officially listed as still being under investigation. Despite the initial belief that the shooting was targeted, there has been no publicly available information in the years since regarding any arrests made or suspects identified in the killing of Tyneisha Pettiford and Shamel Parker. The case remains an unsolved chapter in the city's history of violent crime.
