JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Family members and friends gathered Wednesday night to remember a young father who was killed in a shootout on the Southside last week, and call for justice in his death.
Corey Spann, 21, was found dead early July 2 inside a vehicle in the parking lot of the Walmart on Philips Highway just south of Emerson Street after witnesses told police two cars pulled up next to each other on Philips near University Boulevard and exchanged gunfire. Another man was injured in the shootout.
Dozens of loved ones, some of whom arrived on a small bus, came together Wednesday evening at the Walmart where Spann died. They lit candles, which were arranged in the shape of a heart and his name. A sign reading, "RIP Corey Spann. We love you," was also placed at the site.
Friends described Spann as the kind of guy who always had their backs. They also expressed sadness that his 3-year-old daughter won't grow up with her father.
"He called me grandma. I love it. I miss it. And to be absent from everybody is to be present with the Lord. It may be a cruel way he went, but God knows best," said one family friend.
Family members -- including Spann's mother, Tracy Walker -- asked for anyone with information about his death to come forward.
"I just want answers. I want to know who killed my son. He didn't deserve to be killed," Walker said. "He was a good child. Anything anybody needed, Corey was there for them no matter what the situation was, and we're going to miss him."
Spann would have turned 22 next month.
Anyone with information about the deadly shooting is asked to call the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office at 904-630-0500. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.