In the early morning hours of September 11, 2016, 22-year-old Martinique King and 22-year-old Jahad McLaughlin Jr. were shot multiple times in Cleveland's Fairfax neighborhood. Ten years later, both homicides remain unsolved, and their families are still waiting for answers.
Witnesses in the area reported hearing gunfire and screams. When officers arrived, they found King and McLaughlin lying in the street. Both were rushed to University Hospitals, where they were pronounced deceased. The shooting took place in Cleveland's Fairfax neighborhood.
King was born August 28, 1993, and McLaughlin was born August 26, 1994, making them close in age when their lives were cut short within the same violent encounter. The families of both victims continue to seek answers.
The Case Remains Unsolved
Both killings remain unsolved.
Families and cold-case advocates seek visibility into unsolved cases.
Remembering Jahad McLaughlin Jr.
Community records indicate McLaughlin attended Benedictine, John Adams, and John F. Kennedy high schools in Cleveland and was the father of a 2-year-old son at the time of his death, according to the National Gun Violence Memorial. Funeral services were held on September 20, 2016, at Lift Him Up Apostolic Faith Church in Cleveland, following public visitation at E.F. Boyd and Son Funeral Home, according to Cleveland.com's published obituary.
A Violent Year Left Detectives Stretched Thin
The shooting occurred during a peak year for violence in Cleveland. The city recorded 136 homicides in 2016, a 13% jump over the 120 homicides reported the year before, part of a broader multi-year rise in violent crime, according to Belt Magazine. That surge coincided with the unresolved King and McLaughlin case.
Cleveland's homicide numbers have since fallen well below that 2016 peak. The sources cited here do not provide statewide figures for unresolved killings.
How to Submit a Tip
Cleveland police continue to rely on public tips in cases like this. Anyone with information about the deaths of Martinique King and Jahad McLaughlin Jr. is asked to contact the Cleveland Division of Police Homicide Unit at 216-623-5464.
