Shawn McWhorter, 43, was found killed and burned in an alley in Astoria, Queens, on the morning of August 29, 2015. Firefighters discovered his body and investigators determined he had been shot before being set on fire; the Medical Examiner ruled the gunshot wound the cause of death and classified it a homicide.

Suspicion centered on McWhorter’s girlfriend, 46-year-old Dawn Mcintosh. She allegedly enlisted her son, 21-year-old Donte Watkins, and her 15-year-old daughter, Zanasia McIntosh, to help move the body; when it proved too heavy they set it on fire. A fingernail missing from Mcintosh was reportedly found on McWhorter’s body and became key evidence. Mcintosh was arrested and charged with murder, weapon possession, and tampering; Watkins was charged with tampering; prosecutors did not charge the daughter.

In August 2020 Mcintosh pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter and was sentenced to 24 years in prison with five years of post-release supervision. A son and McWhorter’s mother addressed the court about the family’s loss, and Mcintosh expressed remorse.

Did anyone in Astoria at the time see or hear anything unusual that morning that might still be relevant to this case?