On July 24, 2018, 37-year-old Robert Atkins of Birmingham, Alabama, was fatally wounded in a shooting investigators described as a possible drive-by attack. Emergency responders treated Atkins at the scene but he succumbed to his injuries; the Birmingham Police Department opened a homicide investigation.

Initial accounts said the shots may have come from a passing vehicle, and investigators processed the scene and appealed to the public for help. Motive and suspect descriptions were not released, and there have been no publicly announced arrests or identifications tied to the case.

Atkins’s death left his family and neighborhood seeking answers as the investigation continued. If anyone has information about the shooting or remembers unusual vehicles or activity in the area on July 24, 2018, please come forward to the Birmingham Police.