A Nigerian man who worked as a delivery driver was shot dead on the job in Mitchellville, Maryland, recently, police said.
Prince George’s County police said Noel Njoku, of Springdale, was the victim. He died at the age of 48 and is survived by his wife and four children.
His wife and brother cried and pleaded for answers in the hours after his death.
While talking to reporters amid tears, Chidi Njoku, Noel’s brother said: “Please, anybody who has any information, please, please, please — anybody who has any information should come and help us out, please.”
Njoku was a happy, “peace-loving person” who moved to the U.S. from Nigeria decades ago, Noel said. He had only recently started working for DoorDash.
“I want to know who killed my husband,” Noel’s wife said.
After Noel failed to answer her calls, she went from hospital to hospital looking for him. Eventually, an officer at the University of Maryland Capital Region Medical Center disclosed the sad news.
Njoku was the father of a 15-year-old daughter, a 13-year-old daughter and 11-year-old twin boys.
Police said Njoku was seen suffering from gunshot wounds at about 12:20 a.m. in a vehicle in the 3700 block of Lottsford Vista Road.
In a statement, the police said: “The preliminary investigation revealed Njoku was delivering food to a home in the area when he was shot.”
Njoku was later taken to a hospital, where he died.
It wasn’t immediately clear who shot Njoku and why.
While talking about the effort of the police, Pfc. Antonia Washington said: “Detectives are currently right now at the scene, collecting evidence, speaking to witnesses, trying to piece everything together.”
Njoku’s brother pleaded with someone to contact the police.
He said: “Please let the person come forward and know the kind of hurt he has put on this family.”
A statement released by DoorDash released read: “We are deeply saddened by this senseless act of violence and our hearts go out to the Dasher’s loved ones at this incredibly difficult time. The safety of our community is paramount and we immediately reached out to law enforcement to offer our assistance in any way we can. We are actively working to get in touch with this Dasher’s family to extend our full support.”
