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Family pleads for answers in death of 13-year-old who was killed raking leaves in his front yard
TEMPLE HILLS, Md. — It's been a week since someone shot and killed a 13-year-old boy out raking leaves in his front yard in Prince George's – and police still have no idea who did it or why.
His family is pleading for anyone with any leads to call Crimesolvers.
Eighth-grader Jayz Agnew's parents, Juanita and Antione, are preparing for a Friday night candlelight vigil in the front yard of his home where he was killed at 2121 Jameson St. in Temple Hills at 6 p.m.
"This cannot be another little boy with a bullet that goes unmentioned," said his mother. "We're going to go wherever we need to go to get justice for Jayz, because enough is enough."
The rake Jayz was using is still out on his front porch. So is a dustpan he was using to clean up the leaves. But with his killer still out there, his family up to now has been too afraid to return to their own home.
"I'm terrified of even driving on the street. I don't know. I didn't expect this to happen, so anything could happen in my mind," said his mom.
Jayz's family says he was so chill, he barely argued with his own little sister, Aaliyah, 6. They can't imagine he would anger anyone enough to kill him.
"Not at all, no. He wasn't that kind of kid. No," said his mother. "He was a really good brother," said Aaliyah. "It cannot possibly be something he did, because he was too calm, he was cool like a cucumber," said his father.
The family said the killer could not possibly have been mad at them either. "We're peacemakers," said Juanita, who is a nurse at a hospital. Antione is a caregiver for a paraplegic man.
They said Jayz spent most of his time playing video games – and dreaming big dreams.
"He wanted to be a doctor, but specifically in the emergency room," said his mother, who finds it particularly tragic that his last visit to the hospital was as a mortally wounded patient.
Days after he arrived, his family had to say goodbye.
"I grabbed his hand and I keep talking to him. I remind him of the nice times we had and how much we will miss him," said his maternal grandmother, Julin Nunes. "He knows I love him, and he was a good boy," said his other grandmother, Mavin Davis, her voice breaking with emotion.
If Jayz's death was random or a case of mistaken identity, the family fears it will be even harder for detectives to catch his killer.
They plan to use the money flowing into a GoFundMe to break the case.
"I really want to encourage every parent to have that conversation with their child. If they saw something, they should speak up. Because our family is hurting too. If we don't get to the bottom of it, it could be another little boy with a gunshot," said Juanita.
The family will return home for that vigil Friday evening. And they'll pray that anyone who knows anything will call the police. There's a $25,000 reward.
