FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A family is pleading for someone to come forward after a man was gunned down last week in Fort Lauderdale.
The young father had just celebrated his 30th birthday when he was shot at an Airbnb.
His killer remains on the run.
Family and friends of Ivan DeJesus held a tribute for him Sunday night, days after he was murdered.
“He was tough. But he was a good father, a good son, a good friend -- everybody knew him, everybody loved him,” his mother, Diane Marte, said. “I will never see him again, his friends will never see him again, his brother, his family. They took him away from me.”
During the candlelight vigil, loved ones came together to remember him.
His sister-in-law Mercedes Martinez says the family is doing their best to cope.
“Finding out the news and everything, it was heartbreaking,” she said.
Police confirmed that DeJesus was shot Thursday morning in the 4700 block of Northeast 18th Avenue in Fort Lauderdale.
He later died at Broward Health Medical Center.
On Sunday, Marte made a plea to the detectives handling her son’s case.
“I need the police to find them -- find them. Don’t stop. Don’t let it get cold,” she said.
Fort Lauderdale police have not announced any arrests in the case. A motive for the shooting remains unclear.
Anyone with information is asked to call Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.