On January 13, 2023, 18-year-old Joseph Kawa, a Black male, was fatally shot in Baltimore, Maryland. The shooting occurred about 2:24 p.m. on the unit block of South Caton Avenue. Kawa was one of three people sitting in a silver Honda Accord at the intersection with Lohrs Street when four masked individuals in black exited a gray Infiniti and fired at least 45 shots into the car. Kawa sustained two gunshot wounds, to the head and thigh, and was found unresponsive; he died shortly after arriving at the Maryland Shock Trauma Center. A second occupant, a 17-year-old male, suffered a graze wound to the head and survived. Two firearms were recovered inside the victims’ vehicle but showed no signs of having been fired.

Police later linked a gray Infiniti with distinctive trunk damage to the shooting and arrested 20-year-old Benjamin Rowland, Jr., on March 2, 2023. A Glock 19 reportedly was found on Rowland when he was stopped; a firearms expert tied seven of the recovered shell casings to that handgun. Rowland was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder, and multiple firearm offenses; prosecutors cited surveillance footage, cell phone location data, and a jail call as part of their case, while the defense described the evidence as circumstantial and noted the victims’ alleged violent lifestyle.

Does anyone have information about Joseph Kawa, his activities that day, or the shooting at South Caton Avenue and Lohrs Street?