Family mourns loss of young father killed after shooting on Fourth of July in Mobile

MOBILE, Ala. ( WKRG ) — Family and friends are preparing to lay a young father to rest. 22-year-old DaShaun Bonner was shot and killed on the Fourth of July in the parking lot of a Mobile shopping center.

DaShaun Bonner had two young children and was preparing to celebrate a birthday at the end of the month. His life came to an end on the Fourth of July after he was shot in the parking lot of the Academy Sports + Outdoors at the Festival Centre in Mobile.

“I’m blowed away that it happened, but I never expected it. Nothing like that happened and I miss my cousin dearly; it’s crazy how everything just played out,” said Bonner’s cousin Benjamin Smith.

Smith says he was with Bonner when he was shot. He says someone broke into his car while they were in the store and they came back to get security camera video when someone drove up to them and opened fire.

“He just loved everybody. He’s a family man. He played basketball. All he wanted was the best for everybody,” said Smith. “It didn’t make me more fearful because I don’t expect things like this to happen in the world.

“But I didn’t anticipate it to happen to us because we ain’t, we ain’t in there. We don’t beef with nobody.”

Questions remain over what happened in the Festival Centre parking lot on the Fourth of July and who is responsible.

“It hurt. You know, I can’t even act like it don’t. But, you know, you just have to accept the things that come in life,” said the victim’s brother, DeAndre Bonner.

There’s little information about what happened. Mobile Police only released an image of a minor wanted in connection to the shooting, but no arrests have been made.

The family has set up a GoFundMe to help cover funeral expenses .

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