In the winter of 2014, a gathering to mourn a lost friend turned into the scene of a second tragedy, leaving a Philadelphia family heartbroken and a community searching for answers. On the evening of January 5th, 24-year-old Basir Amaker, a Black male, was shot and killed in a triple shooting on the 6200 block of Media Street. Amaker and his friend, Karon Bailey, also 24, had attended a memorial for a childhood friend who had been murdered the previous night.
As they sat in a car with a third friend after the vigil, gunfire erupted.
Amaker was struck multiple times in the chest and was rushed to Lankenau Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Bailey also succumbed to his injuries that night, while the third man in the car was wounded but survived. The brazen violence of the attack was compounded by the sorrowful occasion that had brought the friends together, deepening the shock and grief for their loved ones. Amaker's mother remembered her son as someone she tried to keep safe from the very street violence that ultimately claimed his life, encouraging him to have friends over to their home instead of being out.
Despite the fact that numerous people were in the area at the time of the shooting, a wall of silence met investigators. Not a single witness came forward with information that could lead to an arrest. Police were left with little to go on, with no description of the suspect or suspects and an unknown motive, as neither Amaker nor Bailey had any known enemies or involvement in criminal activity. A substantial reward was offered for any information that could lead to the capture of those responsible for the double homicide, but the case has remained unsolved, leaving a grieving family without closure and a community still waiting for justice.
