Jalen Devar Bell, 21, of North Port, Florida, died after being shot during an incident at Blue Ridge Park on March 2, 2016. Bell was found unconscious behind the wheel of a Ford Ranger with a gunshot wound to the head and was airlifted to Sarasota Memorial Hospital, where he died two days later. A second victim, 26-year-old Travis Shawn Wright, suffered gunshot wounds to a leg and an arm and survived.

Witnesses said they saw 25-year-old Nicholas Berg Popko wrestling with one of the victims in the park before Bell and Wright tried to leave in the truck. Popko allegedly fired from about five to six feet, shattering the driver’s side window and striking Bell. Popko was located roughly 300 yards from the scene with a Glock .40-caliber pistol and was taken to the North Port emergency room for bleeding to his legs; he reportedly admitted involvement before police questioned him. Charges against Popko were later elevated to second-degree murder.

Bell is remembered as a beloved member of his family and community. If anyone has information about the events at Blue Ridge Park that day, please come forward to the North Port Police Department.