Suniya Brooks, a 16-year-old girl known to friends and family as NyNy, had a name that perfectly matched her sunny and bright personality. Remembered for her beautiful smile and sweet, kind nature, she was a student at Gull Lake Community Schools in Michigan who also worked a job at McDonald's. Suniya was already dreaming of the future and often talked about her ambition to explore the world of cooking and one day open her own cafe. Her life, full of warmth and promise, was tragically cut short, leaving a void in the lives of her family, friends, and community.
In the early morning hours of Sunday, July 25, 2021, Suniya had just finished her shift at work and went to visit her grandmother at the Big Bend apartment complex in the Township of Kalamazoo. At approximately 2:05 a.m., while she was outside with a crowd of people, a vehicle drove by and someone inside opened fire. Suniya was struck by a stray bullet and fatally wounded.
Another 16-year-old was also hit and seriously injured in the indiscriminate shooting. Officers from the Township of Kalamazoo Police Department responded to multiple reports of gunshots in the area of 2220 Gull Road. They found Suniya on the ground with a gunshot wound, and despite efforts to save her, she succumbed to her injury at the scene. The vehicle involved in the drive-by shooting sped away and has never been identified.
The investigation into the female teenager's homicide was launched by the Township of Kalamazoo Police Department. In the years that followed, detectives interviewed numerous people but have not been able to identify any suspects or make an arrest. The case remains a painful open wound for her family and the wider community. To assist in the ongoing effort, students from the Western Michigan University Cold Case Program partnered with township detectives, helping to organize and digitize the case file and create new documents to support the investigation.
Suniya’s mother, Lea Braxton, has spoken publicly about the enduring pain of losing her daughter. "It's a ball of emotions, some days are better than others, but for the most part, it’s just a void," she said. "It’s a big hole, it’s a gap.” Recalling the moment she received the news, Braxton described being woken from her sleep by a phone call. “The first thing I heard is, ‘TT, Suniya dead.’ So I hung up the phone, because I was like, what the hell? Like, what? And then I called back, like, am I dreaming?” Braxton has also called on the community to address the root causes of gun violence, questioning the anger that leads to such senseless loss of life.
The passage of time has not diminished the family's quest for answers. On the five-year anniversary of Suniya's death in July 2026, her mother's plea for justice continued as police renewed their push to find the person responsible. The pain remains as raw as it was in 2021, a constant reminder of a future that was stolen.
As of July 2026, no arrests have been made in Suniya Brooks's murder, and the case remains unsolved. The Township of Kalamazoo Police Department continues to seek information from the public that could finally provide a breakthrough. Silent Observer is offering a cash reward of up to $1,000 for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons involved in the shooting. Anyone with information, no matter how insignificant it may seem, is urged to contact the Township of Kalamazoo Police Department at (269) 488-8911 or Silent Observer at (269) 343-2100. Anonymous tips can also be submitted online through the Silent Observer website.
