A stray shot flew into a man’s home in Northwest D.C. on Sunday evening and killed him, police say they believe according to an initial investigation.
Jose Carcamo was the victim. He was 59.
Stream NBC4 newscasts for free right here, right now.
WATCH HEREIt started as a normal Sunday evening. Carcamo was eating dinner at home with his mother. His mother was in another room when she heard the sound of gunshots and rushed to check on him, only to see that he had been killed.
“I got up and said, ‘What is this?’ I got up and he was already lying on the table, covered in blood,” María Ángela Ramírez told Telemundo 44 in Spanish.
We have the news you need to know to start your day. Sign up for the First & 4Most morning newsletter — delivered to your inbox daily.
SIGN UP Carcamo’s mother lives in El Salvador and had to come to D.C. to spend Mother’s Day with her son.
Officers were called to the apartment building in the 1500 block of Ogden Street, in the Columbia Heights neighborhood, at about 6:20 p.m., Executive Asst. Chief Andre Wright told reporters.
Carcamo was found in an apartment suffering from a gunshot wound. D.C. medics treated him, but he died, Wright said, calling his death “tragic.”
D.C. police have not made any arrests. They say Carcamo was not the intended target.
“We don’t believe that this shooting, which happened in the rear of this location, has anything to do with him,” Wright said.
Carcamo worked in construction and was in the process of building a house for his mother in their home country.
“He was such a good person. He’s not messing with anyone. That’s what I’m asking for: justice,” his mother said.
Officers were searching for clues and working to speak with potential witnesses. No information on a suspect was released.
Police will seek justice for the victim, his family and his community, Wright said.
“We can’t shrink in fear. I think that’s what these perpetrators want – but they’re wrong. And so we intend to stand alongside this family and community and bring justice to this community, and for as long as it takes, stay here to help restore the sense of peace that every community deserves,” he said.
Anyone with potentially relevant information is asked to contact police. A $25,000 reward for information is available.
Police say they’re now trying to find surveillance video to help with the investigation, as Carcamo’s mom is now left to grieve her son's death.
D.C. crime statistics show homicides are down 8% this year compared to the same period last year, with 61 victims this year and 66 last year. Reports of violent crime are down 22%.
Police records show in the past five years, the area around Ogden Street has had seven homicides, 52 assaults with a dangerous weapon and 101 robberies.
One neighbor said it’s why he’s planning to move out.
"People want to feel safe in their neighborhoods, and I just have not ever felt safe in this one," resident Nacho Echazarreta said.
Several other neighbors didn’t want to be identified but also told News4 they feel unsafe in the area.
