Man gunned down, killed outside girlfriend's house in Philadelphia; mother seeks answers years later

ByHeather Grubola and Rick Williams WPVI logo
Sunday, May 26, 2024
Man gunned down, killed outside girlfriend's house in Philadelphia; mother seeks answers years later
Man gunned down, killed outside girlfriend's house in Philadelphia; mother seeks answers years later

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A man leaving his girlfriend's house was shot and killed nearly four years ago in Philadelphia.

Since his death, his mother is still hoping someone will come forward with answers concerning her son's murder.

Corey Holbrook's mother didn't want to give her name but wanted to impress on others just what a special person her son was to his family and community.

"Corey was a go-getter. Corey was the type of person who just loved people. He was the type of person that when, if you asked him for something, he was willing to give you," she recalled.

She said the 37-year-old had a passion for working with children.

"He worked for children, worked with children within the school system that had autism, nonverbal," she said. "He really worked hard to see them move forward."

She said on May 28, 2020, Holbrook was leaving his girlfriend's place along the 5200 block of Wayne Avenue in Philadelphia's Germantown section.

"As he was driving off that fateful night that it happened, whoever this was jumped in the middle of the street and started shooting at the rear of his car which caused him to crash," Holbrook's mother explained.

It was 11:15 p.m., but that didn't stop residents of the nearby apartment building from coming outside and filming the scene on their phones.

Holbrook was still alive when the police arrived but died from a gunshot wound later that night at the hospital.

The City of Philadelphia is offering up to $20,000 in reward money 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 will remain anonymous.

"I'm praying. I'm praying to anyone that's out there who knows your family. Please help us. This person is an individual who took my son from me in such a manner," Holbrook's mother pleaded.