Do you know who killed this youth minister and entrepreneur? On the evening of August 12, 2012, Kristen Lartey, a 22-year-old African-American woman from Boston, Massachusetts, was fatally shot while sitting in a parked car on Harlem Street in the Dorchester neighborhood. Lartey, who was from Hyde Park, had recently graduated from St. John's University in New York. She and her friends were attacked at approximately 9:30 p.m. by an unknown gunman who opened fire on their vehicle.
Lartey was not the only victim of this tragic event.
Two other women, both 22 years old, were also killed in the shooting: Genevieve Marie Philip of Milton and Sharrice Perkins of Dorchester. A fourth woman in the car was wounded but survived the attack. Perkins was a member of a state championship double Dutch team, and Philip was a mother who had recently enrolled in beauty school. Prior to the shooting, the group of friends had attended a gathering at the Shattuck Picnic Grove in Franklin Park.
In the aftermath of the shooting, Boston Police launched an investigation into the triple homicide. Law enforcement officials stated that they did not believe the shooting was a random act of violence and suggested that it might have been gang-related, with one of the victims being the specific target. However, they have not publicly identified which of the women may have been targeted.
To date, no arrests have been made in the case, and the murder of Kristen Lartey and her friends remains unsolved. In the years following the incident, investigators have continued to appeal to the public for assistance. They have released images of a light-colored or white SUV, possibly a newer model Saturn Vue or Chevrolet Captiva, that was seen in the vicinity of the shooting and is believed to be connected to the crime. The families of the victims have held vigils and continue to seek justice for their loved ones.
