Crimestoppers is offering an $8,500 reward for information about those who shot a UVA student in this neighborhood near the Corner.
The Jefferson Area Crimestoppers are offering a reward for information leading to an arrest in a robbery and shooting that occurred on the 1000 block of Wertland Street on September 10. Police currently have no suspects in the case, and property owners in the neighborhood have pitched in funds that add up to an $8,500 reward.
A 21-year-old UVA student was talking on his cell phone during the wee hours on the porch of a residence. He was approached by two men, described as African American, who took his cell phone, searched his pockets and shot him in the abdomen. He was taken to UVA Hospital and has since been released. Over three weeks after the event, City police have not made any arrests in the case.
Crimestoppers offers rewards in cases that are especially difficult to solve, City spokesman Ric Barrick says. But, in this case, property owners in the area have also pitched in. “We anticipate that more folks will come to the table with some money that will be specifically towards solving that crime,” Barrick says. “Obviously there has been a lot of interest in the neighborhood, because it’s a neighborhood that’s changing a lot.”
It’s also a neighborhood that’s saturated by student rental property, and the companies fronting the reward are big owners of University rentals. Not surprisingly, companies with the most Corner interests gave the most: Blue Ridge Apartment Council, Charlottesville Apartments, CBS Rentals, Real Properties, Wade Apartments and Woodard Properties each gave $1,000 for the reward. Other funds were given anonymously to the police department to reach the $8,500 sum (at press time).
Police are working to inform students of the dangers in the neighborhood, but an arrest and conviction could do a lot to dispel fears. Yet it seems it’s too late to convince at least one student—the victim of the shooting has left UVA and returned to his hometown.
