CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The family of a man who was shot and killed while walking home in southwest Charlotte in September 2022 is asking for the public's help for any information that finds his killer.
"He was fun, he had a great sense of humor," Theresa Behrends, Eric Behrends' mother, said. "I miss getting the phone calls, 'Hey mom, I just wanted to hear your voice.'"
On the night of Sept. 22, 2022, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police responded to a 911 call for a welfare check along South Tryon Street near Steele Creek Road around 11:15 p.m. The caller said they saw a man lying along the side of the road. When officers arrived, they found the 29-year-old Behrends dead from a gunshot wound.
"We have no choice but to go through this," Theresa Behrend said. "We do not want this to happen to another family. There's no way to describe that call."
Detectives say Behrends had just left a 7-Eleven in the area and was walking back to his apartment when he was shot. Multiple CMPD officers and a K-9 unit were called to the area but they didn't find a suspect.
Behrends' family says nothing was missing and there's no sign that he was robbed prior to be killed.
"We don't have any clue why," Bob Behrends, Eric's father, said. "Talking with his friends at the funeral service, no one indicated any enemies. If anything would've been missing, we would've had a potential reason, but just for the fact that he was shot to be shot ... can't make the connection."
CMPD says the case remains open and the investigation ongoing. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call Charlotte Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600. All calls to Crime Stoppers are anonymous and information that leads to an arrest may be eligible for a cash reward.
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