Crime Fighters 6abc: Aspiring hairdresser Ahmad Morales shot dead in Philadelphia; mother seeks justice

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — Four years ago, 24-year-old Ahmad Morales was shot dead in Philadelphia.

Now his mother speaks to Action News for the first time about her son and the events of that fateful day.

Tamika Morales is a hairdresser and said her son Ahmad followed in her footsteps.

“He started being a barber when he was 16 and he did that until he died,” Tamika said.

On July 3, 2020, Tamika said she hadn’t heard from Ahmad all day, which was unusual. Later that night, she received a call, but it wasn’t from her son.

“Then I got a call from a young woman he was dating at the time. And she was just screaming into the phone and saying that my son had been shot,” she recalls.

At 7:19 p.m., police were called to the 1200 block of South 24th Street in the Point Breeze neighborhood because a person had reportedly been shot.

When they arrived, there was a crime scene but no victim.

Ahmad had been shot multiple times but was taken to the hospital by private vehicle before police arrived.

His death was later confirmed in hospital.

Tamika said he received a call and then went to a corner store, but not the one near his home. Surveillance video from the area shows a white Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo (model years 2016 to 2020) driving toward Ahmad.

According to police, a rear seat passenger got out of the vehicle, when it stopped, approached Ahmad and shot at him. The driver and another passenger also fired from the vehicle.

“I just think, you know, sometimes I think, you know, was my son tricked? Did someone tell him to come to this store?” Tamika asked.

The city of Philadelphia is offering a reward of up to $20,000 for the arrest and conviction of the person responsible.

All you have to do is call the Citizens Crime Commission at 215-546-TIPS. All calls remain anonymous.