HOUSTON — A young man coming to live out his dream in Houston was murdered on Feb. 24, 2019. Now, more than two years later, his family across the world in Africa is desperate for answers.
When the sun sets on the west side of Houston, the Bissonnet strip comes alive. It's dotted with dive bars and an international scene reflective of Houston’s diversity. But it can leave newcomers to the city vulnerable. Newcomers like 24-year-old Ebenezer Sewornoo.
“If you look behind you, you will see a window upstairs with a light on, that was Ben’s room," Fatu McIntosh said.
McIntosh is Sewornoo's aunt who he lived with in Spring for four years. They simply called him Ben.
"He was loved, and he was pampered," McIntosh said.
Sweornoo grew up halfway across the world, in Ghana. He was the youngest child and was raised in a military family. Family members said he was always eager to learn and his sister, Regina Sewornoo, encouraged him to study abroad.
“It’s hard to see that, someone who would go to school in the U.S. for a better future, for better opportunities can just be killed out of the blue for no reason," Regina Sewornoo said.
Harris County Sheriff’s Office Homicide Investigator Alfred Vera has been on the case since the beginning.
“He was not involved in any type of criminal activity. We’ve learned that he was just here trying to live his life," Vera said.
The best piece of evidence in the case is surveillance video from the crime scene. It shows the moments before the suspected killer runs across a nightclub parking lot on a Sunday morning and fired shots at the car Ebenezer Sewornoo was sitting in. It happened in the 13000 block of Bissonnet around 7 a.m.
Detectives want people to pay close attention to two cars they believe could help catch the killer. The first is a 2016 to 2018 gray Toyota Tundra. The second is a 2018 white Mercedes Benz SUV.
Detectives also think there might be witnesses who can help them. The crowd that had spilled out from the nightclub. Investigators identified it as the Vienna Lounge.
“There was an argument in the parking lot that resulted because of a parking spot. That’s when the victim and his friend got into a vehicle and began to leave the parking lot," Vera said.
What you can’t see from the video is how many people were in the parking lot. Investigators said there were about 50 and that’s why they strongly believe there’s someone out there that can help them solve this case.
"I want people to first see if they recognize the vehicle ... the individuals that get in a truck and leave," Vera said. "I would like for people to also search their cell phones, their social media from that day ... just to see if they recorded anything."
McIntosh will never forget the moment she got the call and rushed to the scene.
“That was the last time I saw Ben,” McIntosh said. “We want to know, who killed him and why did you kill him in cold blood?”
Regina Sewornoo lives in Africa but hopes that with the time that has now passed, someone will come forward to help.
“All I want is justice. That is all. My brother was just 24 years old," she said.
If you have any information about the shooting, call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-8477 (TIPS) or the Harris County Sheriff's Office at 713-274-9100. You could be eligible for a reward of up to $5,000.