Police release photos of suspect vehicle in fatal shooting of Akron woman, 18; incident prompts vigil, protest

Na’Kia Crawford was seen as a “shining light” that brought happiness to everyone around her.

Teachers, family and friends said she was kind, quiet, smart and hardworking.

“She was like my walking history book,” said her younger sister, Nicolette. “She loved history.

“I learn something new from her every time I’m with her.”

Crawford, 18, was fatally shot Sunday afternoon while driving with her grandmother in Akron.

She had graduated from North High School less than two weeks before she was killed.

Officers responded to North Howard and East North Streets about 1:25 p.m. Sunday to find Crawford with multiple gunshot wounds. She was transported to Summa Akron City Hospital, where she later passed away.

No arrests had been announced as of late Monday afternoon.

At about 12:30 p.m. Monday, family, friends and people who never knew Crawford started lining up to block the intersection where the incident happened in protest, calling for justice in the shooting. A candlelight vigil was scheduled at the intersection Monday evening.

Witnesses at the protest told the Beacon Journal and police that a white man in a black sports car shot Crawford. Family members said they believe the incident was racially motivated.

Mayor Dan Horrigan said in a statement that police are following up on those reports, and looking for additional evidence.

He said Crawford was a young woman who deserved a life and future.

“I feel that it is essential to say clearly and loudly: Black lives matter,” Horrigan said. “Na’Kia Crawford’s life mattered.”

Raya Brooks, 18, one of Crawford’s classmates, said Crawford was the nicest, sweetest person, and was taken too soon.

“It’s not fair,” Brooks said. “It’s not fair and it’s not right. Justice needs to be served for her.”

Lisette Williams, Crawford’s mother, said they were celebrating her daughter’s graduation on June 3. She said her daughter was prepared to start her future at Central State University.

Williams said Crawford was driving home from the bank with her grandmother when she was shot. The family lives about two blocks away from where the shooting happened.

Her mother said Crawford was always bright, never dwelling on the bad or the sad in life.

“It’s not fair to us,” Williams said. “It’s not fair to any of us.”

Crawford’s father, Nicholas Crawford, said it’s hard to believe that his daughter was killed. He said his daughter was an angel who never did anything wrong to anybody, and that she was gunned down for no reason.

“It’s like a nightmare and I can’t wake up,” he said. “My daughter was my world.”

North High School principal Kim Sabetta said teachers described Crawford as an amazing young lady. She said Crawford was hardworking and didn’t have a “mean bone in her body.”

“She always was wanting to do the absolute best that she could, and just brought happiness to everyone that was around her,” Sabetta said.

Sabetta said Crawford was in the school’s IT program taking networking security classes, and was planning to study computer science.

Akron Public Schools Superintendent David James said the whole school system is mourning Crawford’s death.

“We will never know what Na'Kia Crawford might have done in or after college,” James said in a statement. “She is our second student in a week to die a violent death. The flame of her candle went out way too early. To make it to her high school graduation, with plans for her future, especially during this difficult time of COVID-19, just stings that much more. The heartache is real for those of us left behind to pick up the pieces.”

Many of Crawford’s family members attended the protest. Police arrived to block traffic to the intersection to keep the area safe.

Lt. Michael Miller spoke with family members, one with tears in her eyes, who told Miller the family “can’t take anymore pain.”

“We are turning over every rock,” Miller said as he comforted the woman. “We will do everything we can to find out who did this.”

Miller said the department wants more than anyone for the homicide to be solved, and that detectives have put all the resources they have into the case.

He and other officers came out to talk to the protesters and hear their concerns. Miller said community support will be needed to help solve the crime, and urged people with information to call detectives.

Police released two photos of a black sports car with a dark window tint Monday afternoon, which was believed to be involved in the homicide. Police encourage anyone with information to call the detective bureau at 330-375-2490.

The shooting sparked rumors on social media about a man driving around Akron on a “shooting spree.” Miller said these rumors are not accurate.

He said there appears to be no credibility to posts online, which claimed a man was driving around the city shooting at people. The posts had a vehicle and suspect description, but Miller said police have been given conflicting descriptions from the scene.

Ashtin Dailey, who lives in a nearby apartment building, stood in the intersection where the shooting happened Monday afternoon. She said it was her first protest, and that she heard the incident from her home the night before.

She said they want justice not just for Crawford, but “for all of us.” She said Crawford's whole life was just ahead of her.

“We don’t have children just to have to bury them later on,” Dailey said.

Myriam Rosser graduated with Crawford and has known her since the fourth grade. She said Crawford’s laugh alone could change someone’s day.

Rosser remembers Crawford teaching her how to do the “Wobble” at a middle school dance, just one of many times she went out of her way to put other people first.

She said the attention Crawford’s death has gotten should bring awareness to the fact that the Black community constantly has to deal with these kinds of losses.

“These are the stories that need to be told in a way our ancestors’ stories weren’t,” Rosser said.

“Because this is not just an Akron problem,” Rosser said. “... It’s a community problem. It’s a world problem.”

Crawford had a close relationship with many of her family members, who said she was always known to look for the positive in a situation.

Her sister, Nicolette, said the silver-lining for her was seeing all the people who came out to the protest. She said it shows just how much her older sister was loved.

“That’s really all she ever wanted, was love,” she said.

Reach Akron Beacon Journal reporter Sean McDonnell at smcdonnell@thebeaconjournal.com or 330-996-3186