On a cold February night in 2017, the vibrant atmosphere of a concert at the Hotel Davenport in Davenport, Iowa, was shattered by the sound of gunfire. When the chaos subsided, 29-year-old Marques Cotton, a Black male from Peoria, Illinois, lay wounded. He was rushed to a local hospital, but tragically, his life could not be saved. Another individual was also injured in the shooting that erupted shortly before 1 a.m. on Sunday, February 12th.
The evening was meant to be one of entertainment, with an R&B artist scheduled to perform. However, reports from concertgoers indicated the artist never took the stage. Instead, the event turned into a scene of violence that claimed Cotton's life and left another person needing medical attention. The Davenport Police were called to the Brady Street hotel following reports of shots fired and arrived to a grim scene.
In the days that followed, the Davenport Police Department announced they were actively investigating the deadly shooting. They appealed to the public for any information that could lead to an understanding of the events that transpired and help identify who was responsible for the violence that cut Marques Cotton's life short.
Despite the initial investigation and public calls for assistance, information regarding any suspects or arrests in the case has not been made publicly available through online sources in the years since the incident. The circumstances surrounding the shooting and the identity of the perpetrator or perpetrators remain unresolved in the public domain, leaving a lingering sense of unanswered questions for the family and friends of Marques Cotton.
