On a late Wednesday evening in Detroit, Michigan, the life of 21-year-old Bionka Lyons was tragically cut short. At approximately 11 p.m. on August 24, 2016, Lyons, a female employee of the U.S. Postal Service, was gunned down outside her parents' home on Crocuslawn Street. She was seven months pregnant with her first child, a boy she planned to name Carter.
The young woman had just gotten out of her car when an assailant ran up to her and opened fire.
Her parents, who were inside their home, heard the five gunshots and discovered their daughter lying in the street near her vehicle. Lyons was rushed to a nearby hospital, but she succumbed to her injuries at around 2 a.m. Her unborn son did not survive.
Investigators believe that Lyons was the intended target and that the motive for the shooting was personal, as it did not appear to be a robbery. A K-9 unit tracked a scent from the scene to a nearby street corner, where it is believed the suspect fled in a vehicle. Despite the efforts of law enforcement, no description of the suspect or their vehicle has been released.
In the wake of the devastating loss, Bionka's colleagues at the downtown Detroit post office remembered her as an upbeat and beloved person. The community, equally heartbroken and outraged, held a peace march and rally in the days and years following her death, demanding an end to gun violence and pleading for anyone with information to come forward. A cash reward was offered by Crime Stoppers for any tip that would lead to an arrest. However, to date, no arrests have been made in connection with the murders of Bionka Lyons and her unborn son, Carter. The case remains unsolved, and a killer is still at large.
