In the bright afternoon of April 5, 2014, in Kansas City, Missouri, 20-year-old Alonzo Thomas IV, known to some as “Zoe,” stepped outside a house on Wayne Avenue to take a phone call. It was around 1:00 p.m. when the sound of gunshots shattered the calm of the neighborhood. Witnesses reported seeing Alonzo speaking with people inside a white van or truck, notable for its sliding passenger door and rusted rims, just before the shots were fired.
Another witness described a Black male
with dreadlocks, dressed in black and white clothing, as the one who shot Thomas in the front yard of the residence. After being wounded, Alonzo managed to stumble to the front door of the home. He knocked, seeking help, before collapsing. When police officers arrived at the 7100 block of Wayne Avenue, they found him lying by the door. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The man who shot him was seen fleeing the area on foot.
In the years that have followed, the case of Alonzo Thomas IV’s murder has remained unsolved, and no arrests have been made. The motive for the shooting is still unknown. The Kansas City Police Department has repeatedly asked for the public's assistance in finding the person or people responsible for his death. A reward of up to $27,000 has been offered for any information that leads to an arrest or the filing of charges. Alonzo's mother, Monique Willis, has become an advocate for families of homicide victims, founding the organization Momma On a Mission Inc. to provide emotional support and seek justice for others who have lost loved ones to violence.
