On the night of May 16, 2016, gunfire erupted near Campfield Avenue and Cowles Street in Hartford. Police arriving about 10:30 p.m. found 22-year-old Joshua Cortez lying in the street; he had been shot multiple times in the head and was pronounced dead at the scene. A 23-year-old woman, Alysha Ocasio, was located in a parked car with multiple gunshot wounds to her torso and was taken to Hartford Hospital, where she died. The pair left behind a young daughter.

Investigators quickly focused on 20-year-old Joseph Silva, an acquaintance of both victims. Witnesses said Silva approached Cortez, shot him in the head, fired additional rounds while Cortez fell and then shot Ocasio in her car; during the incident Silva was reported to have said this is how Joseph Silva does it. The shooting was believed to stem from an ongoing dispute between Silva and Cortez, with Ocasio described as an innocent bystander.

Silva was taken into custody shortly after the killings; his girlfriend Kailei Opalacz was later implicated for helping him attempt to flee. Does anyone have information about Joshua’s life in Hartford or memories of him and his family that might help keep his story alive?