GhLinks Media
The Lexington Police Department is investigating a homicide that happened early Saturday morning on Jessup Street.
Officers responded to a report of a person shot around 1:42 a.m. When they arrived at the scene, they found 19-year-old Xzavion Tyleal Booker dead inside an apartment with multiple gunshot wounds.
Police said this appears to be an isolated incident and there is no ongoing threat to the public. The investigation is ongoing.
The deadly shooting left the Jessup Street neighborhood reeling.
Police continue to search for the suspect, while neighbors are left with fear, heartbreak, and questions.
Tim Hargarve has lived on Jessup Street in Lexington for decades.
“26 years in October. I moved here in ’99,” Hargarve said.
However, what he heard Saturday morning shattered his sense of normalcy. Gunfire echoed through the street early Saturday morning. Hargarve heard it and hid.
“I heard the gun go off about 4 times. And I went to my bedroom, got in my recliner. And I didn’t leave out of my room till after everything had settled down,” he said.
Hargarve looked out the window and saw the aftermath unfold just feet from his home. The fire that followed destroyed John’s workshop, adding to the devastation.
“I went to this bedroom right here, start peeping out my blind, and that’s when I saw all the polices over there and I heard the girl over there crying and hollering talking about they done killed my baby and everything,” Hargarve said.
We spoke with several neighbors, many too scared to speak on camera. Some, though, said they know the people who live in the apartment. They called the shooting senseless, devastating, and unlike anything they’ve ever experienced here.
“The first time I ever spent something on this street right here and I’ve been here in 26 years,” Hargarve said.
A city spokesperson said the loss of someone so young affects the entire community.
“Anyone that’s a victim of gun violence, one is too many. And so it this impact is definitely felt throughout the community when we lose someone, especially someone so young, um, and just to the Booker family and to the loved ones of Mr. Booker, just know that we’re doing everything in our power to bring justice to whoever did this,” said Derwin Hargrave, marketing and communications manager for the city.
