WASHINGTON — The man shot to death Monday night near Catholic University has been identified.
At 9:48 p.m., DC Police were called to the area of 7th and Monroe streets Northeast for the report of a shooting. When officers arrived, they found a man who had been shot.
The victim was not conscious and not breathing at the time. He was taken to a local hospital for treatment, but was pronounced dead.
Homicide detectives are working to investigate the case.
The man was identified Tuesday as 44-year-old Robert Lavender, of Southeast, D.C.
It wasn't yet known what led to the shooting. Police were looking for a man in his 20s wearing a black hooded shirt.
The university released a statement Tuesday addressing the shooting. Below is an excerpt of the statement they say was released to the campus.
"...It is with great sadness that we report the individual who was shot has died. We do not know if either of the victim or suspect has any connection to the University...The increase in violent crime near our campus is a critical issue that requires serious attention, especially on the perimeter of our campus. We have asked for emergency meetings with the MPD’s Fourth and Fifth Districts to address the serious concerns we have about the crime that has occurred just footsteps away from our campus."
The Metropolitan Police Department offers a reward of up to $25,000 to anyone who provides information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for each homicide committed in the District. Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the police at 202-727-9099. Additionally, anonymous information may be submitted to the department’s TEXT TIP LINE by sending a text message to 50411.
This shooting comes less than two weeks after a Kentucky school teacher was shot to death in the area of the 600 block of Michigan Avenue and the 600 block of Alumni Lane.
Maxwell Emerson, a social studies teacher and assistant wrestling coach for Oldham County Schools in Kentucky, died after being shot on Catholic University's campus the morning of July 5. He was just 25 years old.
Police later arrested Jaime Macedo, 22, in connection to the shooting. Police say the shooting happened when Macedo was robbing Emerson.