CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Tony Alston lived as a woman for more than 20 years, and his family wonders if someone might have killed him for that reason.
It does not matter. We didn't care. We didn't judge. He was my older brother. Please tell us something, said Donielle Prophete, Alston's sister.
Alston was shot and killed April 3 in the front door of his Minnesota Road home. His sisters made a public appeal for information in the case on Tuesday.
Now, a gay rights group out of San Francisco hopes to raise the profile of the case.
The group's Web site, Transgender Day of Remembrance, highlights victims around the world who were killed because of their sexual orientation.
There are lots of circumstances which these crimes come under, but they all sort of come under the umbrella of hate crimes and that's what perked my interest about this case, said Gina Morvay.
Police are not able to say this was a hate crime or if Alston's sexual orientation played a role, but investigators acknowledge that solving this case will be difficult and that is typical of transgender murders.
They might have been killed by a lover. They might have been killed by a stranger, Morvay said.
Regardless of the circumstances, the group is planning to add Alston's name to the list when all victims are remembered during October or November.
The case will also be profiled on A&E's The First 48. An air date has not been set.
Investigators are urging anyone with information in this case to contact CrimeStoppers at 704-334-1600.
