North Carolina : SPC Jose Juan Melendez Jr
We will be traveling to the state of North Carolina today, and we also had the opportunity to speak with the parents and sister of Jose Melendez, who was murdered in Raleigh in 2017. But first, a little about this town. Raleigh is the capital of the state of North Carolina, and according to the 2020 census, 467,000 people were living within the city limits. This isn't North Carolina’s most populated city, though. That title goes to Charlotte. Raleigh is known as the City of Oaks because of all the Oak trees that line the heart of the city. Raleigh is also known for being a part of the Research Triangle. This area, along with Durham and Chapel Hill, has a few universities that are known for their research. A few famous people from this city are Mr. Beast, who is a YouTuber, singer Clay Aikens, and David Fox, who won a gold medal in the Olympics for swimming. The list of notable people is a mile long, so I randomly chose these three.
Just like most large cities, Raleigh has some very safe areas along with some dangerous spots. It is rated 13 out of 100, with 100 being the safest. Obviously not the best, but honestly not anywhere near the worst we have seen either. It also has the same average as North Carolina as a whole and just slightly over the United States average. Same as property crime. Honestly, I would like to give a thumbs up to this city for their safety. However, that could be because I have had some really dangerous cities over the last few weeks, so Raleigh seems safe.
On November 29th, 2017, Fort Bragg Army Specialist Jose Juan Melendez Jr. was on leave and made a quick trip to Raleigh to go out with friends to a bar called Black Flower. This particular night this bar was having a nightmare before Christmas theme, where there was live music, and people would dress up—definitely a kick-off to the holidays type of event. Jose loved live music, hanging with his friends, and having a great time. Jose was the designated driver that night and returned to his friends at a townhome off Raven Road in Raleigh, North Carolina, around 3:20 am. He walked into the friend's home, stayed around 15 minutes while he gathered his belongings, and then walked through the parking lot to his vehicle when he was gunned down.
Jose’ story like so many others has not received the media attention it should have so please share this episode, share Jose’ picture anything to get the word out about this soldier that was gunned down. If you have any information at all about who murdered army specialist Jose Melendez, Raleigh CrimeStoppers at 919-834-4357 or the State Bureau of Investigation at 919-662-4500.
There is a $15,000 reward coming from the family and another $5000 from the Governors Cooper's office.
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