FORT WORTH, Texas — The mother of Fort Worth's latest homicide victim is speaking out about gun violence. Barbara Washington told WFAA about her son after learning about his death from a telephone call.
"Mika was really sweet and treated everybody right," Washington said. "And loved everybody."
Her son, 54-year-old Mika Washington, was affectionately known as "Cole." His shooting death comes just as the Fort Worth Police Department (FWPD) makes plans to ramp up awareness about gun violence.
Washington was interviewed in the same place where paramedics tried to save her son's life -- in the garage of their family home.
"This is where Cole grew up," Washington said. "We never thought anything like this would happen to Cole, especially right here in his home."
FWPD Sgt. Jason Spencer said there is nothing worse for officers than to have to notify a family that their loved one has been a victim of a crime, yet alone a homicide.
Officers were dispatched to a Richardson Street address after someone called 911 around 9:54 a.m. Monday, June 5. Several were in the area at the time, which allowed them to arrive at the scene quickly, according to Sgt. Spencer.
"Officers were on scene within three minutes. They found an adult male who was shot. Medical aid was provided immediately. However, the male was pronounced deceased on scene," Spencer said.
"If you know anything about what happened here on Richardson Street, please reach out to the Fort Worth Police Department. We need the public's help. As always in these cases we are relying on our community to help solve these cases," he said.
Although the victim has not been officially identified by authorities, his family shared his name and a photo with WFAA. According to his mother, Cole pretty much stayed to himself at their home in the 4800 block of Richardson Street.
Homicide detectives canvassed the neighborhood for possible witnesses and other clues. Cole's mother shared her son always had a positive outlook on life, despite health challenges.
"His kidneys were bad, then a bad heart, several things were wrong with my son," said Washington.
Cole's murder is the 36th homicide so far this year (Jan. 1, 2023, to June 5, 2023), FWPD said. In the same exact time period last year, there were 43 homicides in the city of Fort Worth.
Fort Worth ended 2022 with 101 homicides on Dec. 31, 2022, according to FWPD. That's down from 2021, when the homicide number for the year was 118.
Ironically, Fort Worth law enforcement leaders are already working to get more residents thinking about making Fort Worth a safer city when it comes to guns.
"Fort Worth Police Department is doing everything we can to help with violence in our community, but we don't do it alone. We have to work together with our partners in the community," Spencer said. "You're going to actually see some messaging coming out from our department over this coming month. This is Gun Violence Awareness Month in June."
As police investigate her son's death, Washington is surrounded by family -- which includes her daughter and granddaughter. She's confident that whoever shot and killed her son will be brought to justice.