In the summer of 2014, a weekend in the Lake Edward section of Virginia Beach was marred by violence that left two young men dead in separate incidents. One of the lives lost was that of 19-year-old Keshmario Leetrell Middleton. In the early morning hours of a Saturday in July, police responded to a call about a shooting in the 700 block of Barrison Way. There, they found Middleton, who had been fatally wounded.
The community was shaken by the news of Middleton's death, which occurred just hours after another fatal shooting on Margate Avenue. In that incident, 25-year-old James Earl Jones was killed, and another man was injured. The proximity in time and location of the two homicides raised concerns among residents and law enforcement. While detectives made an arrest in the shooting of James Earl Jones, charging 21-year-old Ladarius Dashae Stieff with second-degree murder, aggravated malicious wounding, and use of a firearm, the investigation into Keshmario Leetrell Middleton's death continued.
In the initial stages of the investigation, authorities stated they were searching for additional suspects in both shootings and had not determined if the two homicides were connected. No motive for Middleton's shooting was immediately released. The lack of a named suspect or any arrests in his specific case left his family and the community awaiting answers.
As of the latest available information, the investigation into the death of Keshmario Leetrell Middleton remains open. While an arrest was made in the other homicide that weekend, there have been no publicly announced suspects or arrests directly connected to Middleton's case. The circumstances surrounding the death of the 19-year-old male from Virginia Beach remain an unresolved chapter in the city's history, leaving a lingering sense of loss and unanswered questions for his loved ones.
