In the early hours of May 30, 2021, a dispute at a Parkersburg, West Virginia residence on 17th Avenue ended with the fatal shooting of 36-year-old Darren Jimmie Salaam, a Black man from Akron, Ohio. Authorities say Victor Lee Thompson, 43, forced his way into the home about 2 a.m., struck a woman there with a pistol, and then shot Salaam. Salaam escaped through a window but later died at a local hospital. A search of the home turned up illicit drugs, and investigators believe the confrontation began over a botched robbery attempt or an argument about a drug transaction.

Thompson fled and was the subject of a week-long multiagency manhunt before being captured in Ritchie County and charged with murder. At trial, prosecutors said Thompson went to the house to get a refund for bad drugs; the defense claimed self-defense and that Thompson thought Salaam was armed, though no weapon was found on or near Salaam. Testimony included a 15-year-old relative who heard a man screaming and a woman crying before the gunshot, and testimony that Thompson used racially derogatory language when referring to Salaam.

Does anyone have information about Salaam’s last known movements or about witnesses who were at the 17th Avenue residence that night?