By Sean Yoes, Baltimore AFRO Editor, syoes@afro.com
It was supposed to be a joyous occasion; a family reunion at a Long Beach, California park. But, the family reunion turned into a family tragedy when Frederick Taft, 57, was shot to death inside a restroom at the Pan American Park where about 50 people, most of whom were Black, had gathered.
According to the Los Angeles Times, family members believe Taft, a loving grandfather and devoted family man, was the victim of a hate crime.
Sabrina Nichole, a niece of the slain Taft, posted this photo of the memorial set up in honor of her uncle on social media. (Twitter Photo)
“He was the person who everyone would call when they needed something getting done,” David Malonson, the victim’s nephew, told the L.A. Times. “He was a jack-of-all-trades uncle.”
According to family members and friends, Taft was shot to death around 4:30 p.m. on July 21 after he entered the restroom at the park. Sakeena Christmon, a friend of Taft’s who attended the reunion, said she saw a White male carrying a rifle who ran out of the bathroom after the shooting.
According to Christmon, he was wearing khaki shorts, calf-high socks and a fishing hat. She believes Taft’s killing was premeditated and racially motivated. “He came here on a mission to kill,” she said.
Taft’s daughter Corie said hours after the shooting a player from a softball game at the park the day her father was gunned down told her that the group he was with was harassed in the park earlier that day by a group of White men on bicycles hurling racial slurs.
The Long Beach Police Department described the suspect as a White man in his 50’s, however police say they have not “uncovered any evidence of a hate crime.
On July 23, about 100 people gathered at Pan American Park, where Taft was gunned down, to demand justice in his killing.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the Long Beach Police Department would not comment on the type of weapon used to kill Taft.
