Darius R. Spates Jr., 42, known as CoCo or Coke, was fatally shot in the early morning of May 26, 2024. The shooting occurred about 2:30 a.m. on the 3100 block of Main Street near Winspear Avenue in Buffalo’s University Heights neighborhood. He was taken in a private vehicle to Erie County Medical Center and pronounced dead from a gunshot wound to his back.

Born March 16, 1982, Spates was a Bennett High School graduate who loved music, enjoyed fixing things, and had recently started sewing and developing men’s and women’s clothing lines. Family described him as the life of the party, fun, smart, and loving; he was a father.

If anyone knew Darius, his routines, or saw activity on Main Street that night, please share what you know.