HAMPTON, Va. — Police and former classmates of man shot and killed want help finding the gunman.
On Thursday, someone shot Hollis Mason II, 38, around 6:15 p.m. in the 1400 block of West Pembroke Avenue in Hampton, according to Hampton police.
Officers found Mason shot in the parking lot of a restaurant and church. Mason was taken to the hospital with serious injuries, but he later died.
Police said Mason resided in Georgia, but former classmates told 13News Now he attended Phoebus High School in Hampton.
They said Mason returned to the area for a 20 year class reunion this weekend.
"This was a was a good guy, a father, a brother, a son and a friend to many! He did not have issues with anyone. He was highly intelligent and always witty, making the room light up and shine with his humor," said one former classmate. "[He] was a stand up man who surely didn’t deserve to go out like this."
Surveillance video captured after the shooting shows the moments paramedics arrived to the scene. The footage reveals the shooting happened during daylight hours.
Hampton police hope someone saw something and will come forward.
“While we have solutions and try to collaborate, it is an epidemic,” said Cortez Higgs, director of Catalyst Community Care and Action Team.
The group that works with organizations in Hampton Roads to create solutions to violence in the area, including an initiative encouraging witnesses of violence to speak up.
“I know it’s a challenge to speak up against any kind of violence because of the fear of repercussions," said Higgs. "But I would just really encourage community members to try to find empathy, because if they were in that situation, I am doubly sure they would want someone to stand on their behalf.”
This is the second shooting on this road this week.
Another shooting near West Pembroke Avenue happened Monday night. Police said a 29-year-old woman was struck by gunfire in the 1700 block. She was taken to a nearby hospital and is expected to be okay.
An investigation later revealed that she had been driving on Rosalee Drive when an unknown person who had also been driving shot her.
At this time, there isn't any available suspect information in either case.
If you know anything that can help investigators, call the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP or submit an anonymous online tip by clicking here.