Tarreece Sampson had placed a call to say he’d arrived safely at his Fairfax County, Virginia, home, but in the chaotic moments that followed early Friday morning, the friend he had called would hear the killing of the well-regarded teacher’s aide, Sampson’s family said.
The Virginia medical examiner said Monday that Sampson died of a gunshot wound to the abdomen.
Sampson, 24, who worked for Fairfax County schools, called the friend after pulling his car into the Cityside apartment complex after 2 a.m. on Friday following a night out, said his aunt, Patrice Turner. The building is in the Huntington section of the county.
Sampson got out of his car and “walked into” some type of incident in progress, possibly the vandalism or theft of a car, Turner said. The friend remained on the line and heard what followed, Turner said.
Fairfax County police detectives have described to relatives what unfolded, but Turner said she would not relay that account fully because it might hamper the apprehension of Sampson’s killer or killers. Turner said the friend heard gunfire and then a few final words from Sampson: “I’ve been shot.”
Turner said the friend then called 911.
Fairfax County police responded to the scene in the 6000 block of Richmond Highway about 2:20 a.m. and found Sampson unresponsive in the parking lot of the apartment complex. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
No one has been arrested in Sampson’s slaying, and police have not released a description of the killer or killers involved in his shooting.
A Fairfax County police spokesman declined to comment on Turner’s account of events but said detectives think Sampson did nothing to provoke the shooting.
“It seems at this point he was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Officer Don Gotthardt, a Fairfax County police spokesman. “There is speculation he may have thought the bad guys were in need of help. He may have even gone to help them. Those are things that are still under investigation.”
Gotthardt said detectives have no evidence at this time to suggest Sampson was trying to intervene to stop a crime, as reported by some media outlets.
Last Tuesday, Sampson had done well in an interview for a special-education teacher position and was named employee of the month at a local community center where he managed youth-recreation programs.
He was an instructional aide at Fort Hunt Elementary School in Fairfax County before his death. Sampson graduated from Iona College in New York in 2013 and was taking graduate courses at George Mason University. He was planning to become a youth mentor at a local church, and his family said he was engaged to be married.
Turner said Sampson’s death was especially troubling because he had dedicated his life to trying to steer young people in the right direction.
“He was a wonderful, loving nephew,” Turner said. “He was a guy who never failed to explain to the younger generation about how to do the right thing.”
The principal at Fairfax County’s Weyanoke Elementary, where Sampson previously worked, said Sampson was skilled at reaching the hard-to-reach students and was a role model, particularly for boys of color.
“I just wish we could turn back the hands of time on that day,” Turner said.
(c) 2016, The Washington Post ยท Justin Jouvenal
