Patrick Alonzo Alston, a 36-year-old African American man, was shot and killed outside the Shell gas station near Mallard Creek Road and Carolina Lilly Lane in northeast Charlotte on January 27, 2019. Officers found him in the parking lot with a gunshot wound; MEDIC pronounced him dead at the scene. His death was recorded as Charlotte’s 11th homicide that month.

No arrests had been announced and no suspect information was released. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department asked anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers. The Murray Law Firm has suggested that negligent security at the gas station may have been a contributing factor, questioning whether lighting, surveillance, clear windows, and visible security personnel were adequate and offering legal assistance to the family.

If anyone witnessed the shooting or has information about security conditions at that Shell station that night, please share what is known with investigators.