
It’s with an extremely heavy heart that I report Janelle Monáe‘s first cousin, Natasha Hays, was killed in a drive-by shooting in Kansas City.
Natasha, who was revered as a hardworking mother of three, is believed to have been sleeping in her bed when gunshot rang out around 3:45 a.m. on Tuesday.
Via KansasCity.com:
Hays died when gunfire rang out about 3:45 a.m. Tuesday in the 2400 block of North Ninth Street. Police said three others were inside the house at the time but were not hurt.
After the shooting, family members said they were still trying to piece together what had happened. To the best of their knowledge, Hays was sleeping at the time of the shooting.
The Kansas City, Kan., Police Department’s Major Case Unit was investigating the homicide and asked anyone with information about the shooting to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477).
Janelle took to Twitter to call for an end to senseless gun violence.
#KansasCity #Gunviolence is still keeping our city in a dark place. The fear of "who is next?" never leaves. Praying4more light. Help us.
— Janelle Monáe, Cindi Mayweather???????????????????? (@JanelleMonae) August 31, 2016
#KansasCity #Gunviolence is still keeping our city in a dark place. The fear of "who is next?" never leaves. Praying4more light. Help us.
— Janelle Monáe, Cindi Mayweather???????????????????? (@JanelleMonae) August 31, 2016
Nobody deserves to lose their mother, sister, cousin, friend, etc to the hands of evil. Evil has no race. #Gunviolence #NatashaHays
— Janelle Monáe, Cindi Mayweather???????????????????? (@JanelleMonae) August 31, 2016
Hearing your uncle on the phone while he tries to make sense of his daughter being murdered is the most helpless feeling in the entire world
— Janelle Monáe, Cindi Mayweather???????????????????? (@JanelleMonae) August 31, 2016
My thoughts, prayers, and condolences are extended to Janelle Monáe and her family during this difficult time.
Please stop the violence!