Derrick M. Blount was 28 when he was killed in Kansas City, Missouri, on August 3, 2008. His death was one of four separate homicides that occurred across the metropolitan area over a 48-hour period that summer.

Investigators say the probe was hindered from the start by a pervasive silence among potential witnesses; fear of retaliation was reported as a common reason people declined to speak with police. Community leaders and pastors publicly urged residents to come forward, but specific details about where or how Blount was killed never became widely publicized.

Anyone with information about Derrick Blount’s killing is asked to come forward.