On November 11, 2021, multiple 911 callers reported gunfire at an apartment building on Chestnut Street in Rochester, New York. Responding officers found 22-year-old Tywan Harper in a stairwell; he had been shot and beaten to death. Elsewhere in the building officers located 19-year-old Malakai Smith, who had also been fatally shot. The scene was described as a double homicide and prompted an intensive investigation.

Investigators focused on a single suspect and on December 14, 2021 they arrested 29-year-old Timothy Brown of Greece. Authorities say a handgun was recovered during a search of Brown’s home and that Brown had gone to Harper’s apartment intending to kill him, a confrontation that resulted in both men’s deaths. Brown was charged with multiple counts including two counts of first-degree murder and weapons offenses.

If anyone who lived on Chestnut Street or knew Harper or Smith has information that was not reported to investigators, please come forward.