Iris Nicole Longakit, an 18-year-old Black / African American female, was killed on Saturday night, December 12, 2020, in Newark, Delaware, just two days before what would have been her 19th birthday. The shooting happened at the Hunters Crossing Apartments on Fairway Road, where New Castle County police officers were sent at about 9:17 p.m. after reports of gunfire.
When officers arrived near 39 Fairway Road, they found Iris and 23-year-old Allen Huff suffering from gunshot wounds.
The scene unfolded as a double homicide. Responding officers attempted lifesaving aid, but both victims died from their injuries. Early reporting from the scene described witnesses hearing multiple gunshots and people screaming, capturing the sudden chaos that erupted inside the apartment complex that night. What had begun as an emergency call for a shooting quickly became a homicide investigation involving the New Castle County Division of Police Criminal Investigation Unit.
In the immediate aftermath, there were reports that Newark police alerted officers about a suspect fleeing from county police into Newark. A vehicle was reportedly seen traveling at a high rate of speed along Casho Mill Road near Downes Elementary School, and officers converged around Casho Mill Road and Nottingham Road to search the area on foot. Delaware State Police Aviation’s Trooper 4 also responded and circled near the area, including near Appleton Road in Maryland. Despite those urgent movements, officials did not publicly release the identity of the fleeing person or confirm the identity of the shooter.
Police later identified the victims as Allen Huff and Iris Longakit. The case remained under investigation, and authorities asked anyone with information or video surveillance from the relevant time frame to contact investigators. As the years passed, the case was still being treated as unresolved. In a 2024 cold case review, the New Castle County Division of Police Cold Case Squad said it continued to investigate the murders of Iris Longakit and Allen Huff and again asked the public for help.
No online source located for this synopsis reported any arrest, named suspect, charges, trial, conviction, or sentence in connection with Iris Longakit’s death. The available public information indicates that investigators have not announced a suspect and that the case remains an open cold case. Iris was remembered by her family as a beloved daughter, granddaughter, sister, and friend, someone with a beautiful smile who loved fashion, makeup, changing her hairstyles, and spending time with family and friends.
