On the evening of August 12, 2019, 15-year-old Jalen Qadir Islam died after being found in a car that had crashed into a tree on the 2100 block of Slighs Avenue in Columbia, South Carolina. Emergency responders initially saw multiple crash injuries, but paramedics discovered a gunshot wound to the torso that was later determined to be the cause of death. The vehicle Jalen had been driving was reported stolen.

Investigators treated the death as a homicide. On November 1, 2019, police announced the arrest of a 15-year-old acquaintance; the suspect was charged with murder and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime and was held in the juvenile section of the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center while the family court considered whether he should be tried as an adult. Jalen’s father described him as a very special individual, and Jalen was remembered as a Richland County student who loved basketball, music, and spending time with family and friends.

Does anyone have information about Jalen’s life, the events that night, or the people who knew him?