SHELBY, N.C. — An 18-year-old who was shot and killed in Shelby on May 10 was identified as Jovan Nazier Omari Sewell.
The Shelby Police Department said officers responded just before noon along East Warren Street near Chestnut Street. They found Sewell suffering from a gunshot wound and had him taken to Atrium Health - Cleveland for treatment where he later died.
It’s one of the hardest things a parent never expects to endure: dealing with the loss of their child. That's the unfortunate situation Talissa Taylor is now forced to deal with.
“My son not coming back," she lamented when speaking with WCNC Charlotte.
Taylor reached out to share her memories of her son.
"His smile instantly lit the room when he walked in," she said. "He was the life of the party and loved to joke around. He had a caring heart and was the most polite young man. He was great at football and one of the fastest runners. Anything he put his mind to, he could do."
A heavy heart sits behind every unanswered question for Talissa Taylor as she still wonders what happened to her son, Javon whom she called, "Naz".
No arrests have been made yet in connection to his death.
“He didn’t hurt nobody, he was the most easiest outgoing person," Taylor said. "And he was doing so good. He was doing so good. That’s the only thing me and my husband have been talking about the past few weeks is how good he’s doing, the changes that we see in him. How he’s trying."
Taylor tells us her son was the oldest of three and she still struggled dealing the news to her two younger daughters.
"The youngest one, I don’t think she really understands what’s going on yet. Like the other day we had to go to the funeral home and she got mad at me because she wanted to see her brother," she said.
A fundraiser for Taylor can be found here.
Anyone with information is asked to call Shelby Police at 704-484-6845. Anonymous tips can be shared with the Crime Stoppers of Cleveland County by calling 704-481-TIPS.
If your loved one was impacted by this incident, WCNC Charlotte hopes to make this process less painful with our More Than A Number initiative. With your help, we want to share who your loved one was with our viewers in North Carolina and South Carolina. When you're ready, fill out the form below or send us photos, memories and other details about them to desk@wcnc.com.
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