Reward money offered for tips on Ozell Addison, Jr.’s death

BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) - A grieving family is demanding answers months after a teenager was found dead in Gulfport.

They want to know who is responsible for killing him. Family and police hope new reward money can finally lead to closure.

”Two kids walking down the alley there, the neighbor said somebody is in that car,” mechanic David Bielefeldt said. “I went back and looked again in the very back of it and there was a body back there, so I looked to see if I could get any response and I could see there was no movement, no breathing or nothing.”

In December, mechanic Bielefeldt made a discovery no one should ever have to see - a teenager shot to death inside this white GMC parked near an alley on 31st Street in Gulfport.

Nearly half a year later, the killer still roams free.

“I never thought it would be over five months solving this case,” said the victim’s mother Patricia May. “They took someone very dear to us. We love Ozell. As a mother, they took a lot from me.”

May still grieves for her son Ozell Addison, Jr., and she’s not the only one suffering.

“Even though he was my little brother, I felt like I lost a child, just like my mother lost her child,” his older sister Chyna Crowder said.

“Anytime I get contacted about a homicide or gun violence with a young person, it’s a gut check because you’re like, am I going to know this person? Sgt. Jason DuCre with Gulfport Police said. “Unfortunately, when I went to the scene that day, it was Ozell.”

“He was the most talented, he was a musician,” May said. “He was very fun to be around. He was getting ready to go into the military. He just graduated from Lincoln Tech. He was on his way toward a successful life. They took his life before he was able to serve his country.”

“This one did hit close to home because Ozell was part of the ‘Before the Bullet’ program,” Sgt. DuCre said. “I met Ozell through the courts.”

Gulfport police are actively investigating and hoping to bring a killer to justice for the 19-year-old’s family.

“We’re still following leads,” Sgt. DuCre said. “We just need people to talk. With the youth, there’s this code. A lot of times that hinders a lot of our investigations.”

Ozell’s family has now reached out to Crime Stoppers, hoping $2,500 in reward money could lead to an arrest.

“The police have done their best, but we need the public to stand up, and that’s what’s so great about Crime Stoppers is the public can give information to police through a third party like Crime Stoppers where you remain anonymous,” Lori Massey with Mississippi Coast Crime Stoppers said.

“It wouldn’t bring him back but it would bring some kind of closure to our family,” May said.

“Put yourself in their shoes,” Massey said. “They just want to know, who killed my loved one and have them locked away.”

You can call 1-877-787-5898, visit the Coast Crime Stoppers website or download the P3 Tips app on your smartphone.

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