South side homicide victim identified
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Police have identified the victim of Saturday's deadly shooting as 23-year-old Jesse Lee James of Edmonton.
"He is known to Edmonton City Police and we do want to state to the public that it does not appear to be a random incident," EPS spokesperson, Karen Carlson, told Global News.
Witnesses heard a gunshot just after 3 p.m. in a parking lot of a south-side apartment complex near Saddleback Road and 112th Street. "I just heard the loud pop, it sounded like a car backfiring," said Chris Mitchell, who lives nearby.
When homicide detectives arrived, they found James' dead body laying next to a red Cadillac Escalade SUV, which looked into a row of ground-floor apartments. By 6 o'clock police had erected a tent over both the body and vehicle and blocked off large sections of the complex as they investigated the shooting.
According to residents, the Cadillac SUV did not belong in that parking stall, leaving some to believe that the man didn't live at the complex.
One woman, who asked not to be named, saw a group of men approaching the vehicle. She said one of the men grabbed something from inside the SUV before jumping into a white car and speeding away.
After interviewing several witnesses, police describe the getaway vehicle as a 1991-1993 white four-door BMW with tinted windows and minor damage to the passenger side. There is possibly an air freshener hanging from the rear view mirror and a small decal in the top centre of the windshield. “We are asking for information on the current whereabouts of the vehicle as well as information from anyone who may have seen the vehicle prior to or immediately following the homicide,” said Homicide Section Detective Brian Robertson.
Meanwhile, those who live nearby are shocked that something like this could happen in what they thought was a safe and friendly community. "Everybody's got kids in this area, it's very quiet," said resident Mario Gomes.
"It's just disgusting," added Sean Monson. "I've got a newborn baby daughter in there. What if a stray bullet went into our building?"
An autopsy has been scheduled for Wednesday but officials have yet to identify any suspects in the homicide. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Edmonton Police at 780-423-4567 or submit tips anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477(TIPS) or online.
