Vigil honors student as police look for suspect
A few hours before students, faculty and staff from Winston-Salem State (WSSU) and Wake Forest (WFU) universities came together in remembrance of Najee Ali Baker, the student who was shot and killed during a campus party at WFU, the Winston-Salem Police Department released the names of two individuals believed to be responsible for the shooting.
According to reports, Malik Smith, 16, was arrested on Wednesday, Jan. 24 and charged with possession of a firearm assault by pointing a gun, and possession of a firearm on university property.
Police are still actively looking for 21-year old Jakier Shanique Austin, a former student at WSSU, and the person believed to have pulled the trigger at The Barn, an event venue on the campus of WFU.
Police were dispatched to the campus around 1a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 20. Upon arrival officers found Baker suffering from a gunshot wound. He was taken to a local hospital, where he later died.
Baker, 21, a transfer student from Dean College in Massachusetts, was a walk-on defensive lineman for the Ram’s football team and a native of Brooklyn, N.Y.
During the Jan. 24 vigil held at the clock tower on the campus of WSSU Wednesday evening, Jamar Banks, interim vice chancellor for student affairs said, “the Ram Family is hurting.
“We lost another student, another member of our family, another brother to senseless gun violence and I’m tired. Tired of us being on this side of the violent crime statistic rather than the graduation statistic. I’m exhausted,” he continued. “As we look around the audience, let’s hold each other up as Ram Family. Let’s hold this family up and support them with prayer.”
He said, “This is difficult. He was only 21 years old. He was young and we’re sitting here and he’s not with us.”
Shortly after the vigil, Nathan Hatch, president of WFU, released a statement thanking the Winston-Salem Police Department for their hard work. The statement read, “On behalf of Wake Forest University, I am grateful to the Winston-Salem Police Department for its tireless efforts in the investigation of Najee Ali Baker’s tragic death.”
Anyone with any information on the whereabouts of Jakier Shanique Austin is urged to call the Winston-Salem Police Department at (336) 773-7700 or Crime Stoppers at (336) 727-2800.
