Ruben Contreras was 16 when he was shot and killed on November 7, 2020, in Charlotte, North Carolina. He was found fatally shot near the Orchard Trace Condominiums by North Tryon Street after walking home from a memorial event for another teen who had died in a car accident the previous year. Some teens from that event reportedly got into an argument at a nearby shopping center shortly before Ruben was shot.

Contreras was a mentee in the Heal Charlotte program; the founder described him as bright, smart, fun-loving and a prankster. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department has not released suspect information or made arrests, and the investigation’s lack of progress has left the neighborhood frustrated. Family and friends have left balloons and flowers at the scene and held a vigil on November 9, 2020, calling for an end to the violence.

If anyone was in the Orchard Trace area that night or has information about what happened, please share what is known with investigators.