More than five years after 24-year-old Najeebat Sule was shot and killed outside her family’s home, her case is still sitting in the cold case files and her community is still waiting for answers. On March 12, 2021, Sule was in her car in the driveway on the 8800 block of Frankford Avenue when someone opened fire. She was rushed to a nearby hospital and died that evening. Friends and neighbors say the lack of arrests has left a heavy, painful silence over Holmesburg.
Citizens Crime Commission Renews Appeal
Santo Montecalvo of the Citizens Crime Commission told 6abc Philadelphia that investigators recovered 12 .40-caliber Federal Smith & Wesson cartridge casings at the scene and that multiple shots were fired. Montecalvo again urged anyone with information to call the commission’s tipline and stressed that callers can remain anonymous.
Police Timeline And Evidence
According to FOX29, police say officers responded around 5:55 p.m. on March 12, 2021, and found Sule slumped in the passenger seat of a gray Toyota Corolla. Medics took her to Jefferson Torresdale Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 6:27 p.m. The case is listed as DC# 21-08-007420 on local unsolved-homicide trackers, and detectives say they have no suspects at this time, per Philly Unsolved Murders.
Remembering Sule
Sule, known to friends as Najee, had earned a master’s degree and was working toward a Ph.D. in public health, and she represented Nigeria at the Miss Nigeria International pageant in 2019, relatives and friends told The Philadelphia Inquirer. Loved ones described a thoughtful student and community volunteer whose death sent shock waves through local student and immigrant networks.
How To Help
The Citizens Crime Commission and the Philadelphia Police Department are asking anyone with information to call their tip lines: the commission at 215-546-TIPS and the police at 215-686-TIPS (8477), or to submit tips through official forms. The city posts rewards for information that leads to arrests, including up to $20,000 for homicide tips. See the Citizens Crime Commission and the Philadelphia Police Department for details on how to report information.
As another anniversary passes, family and friends continue to press for leads and some measure of closure. Investigators say even the smallest detail could help break a cold case, and they are still asking the public to come forward.
