By JACK TOLEDO
(Source: Smartnews)
An adored owner of restaurant and community activist in Miami was slain outside his shop in cold blood next to his girlfriend.
Dwight C. Wells was playing dominoes outside his shop, Winning and Won Turkey Legs in Florida, on the night of October 10, when a masked man shot and killed him.
The murderer fled the scene after shooting Wells, who was playing with two people, one of whom was his girlfriend, Lulu, who watched the horrific tragedy, according to NBC Miami.
‘He didn’t deserve that. He didn’t. It wasn’t right. He wasn’t just an animal,’ said Lulu to the outlet.
She added that the 40-year-old was ‘a good person. He gave, I’d see him giving to a lot of people and building a lot of people’s brands. People respect him in this community.’
As investigators searched the scene, many members of the community were seen watching from afar, according to the outlet.
At this time, no arrests have been made, and the investigation remains active.
The owner was recognized in his city for founding several organizations, most notably his Bikes Up Gunz Down campaign, focused on reducing crime.
Mary Brown, Wells’s mother, told Local 10 how she was proud of her son for his activism efforts: ‘My son was a pillar for this community. He would always give someone the shirt off his back. I miss him, but he is with the Lord, and I will see him in Heaven.’
His aunt Suzette Hester said to the outlet: ‘My nephew did amazing stuff for the community. He didn’t deserve this!’
A GoFundMe was launched for the activist which said: ‘We watched Screamer come from the mud. A wild, curious boy to a strong man of God. He knew God, he found his way back, and he never let go. His vision was bigger than himself, he just wanted change.’
Wells, who had 10,000 Facebook followers, and many shared their grief on the platform: ‘They didn’t have to take your life like that.
‘You didn’t deserve what they did to you right in front of your place of business. You did so much for the people in your community.’
Another added: ‘Y’all always f*** over the people that care the most. The youth suffer when we lose men who get it. Take your rest, Dwight Wells, you put in your fair share of work.’
A third said: ‘R.I.P. Dwight Wells, gone too soon but never will be forgotten, always in our hearts, fly High, Screamer, praying for the family and friends.’
Wells was open about his past on his social media, where he explained that he was a convicted felon.
When he was 19 years old, he was convicted in 2004 of Second-degree murder, two counts of armed robbery, and an armed carjacking.
He was sentenced to 10 years in prison on May 7, 2007, according to Miami-Dade County court records found by Local 10.
After Wells was out of jail, he launched his successful turkey leg business and launched his faction of the Bikes Up, Gunz Down movement.
Bikes Up, Gunz Down began as a protest for the untimely death of a biker in Philadelphia in 2014, according to the Miami Herald.
Kyrell Tyler, or better known as Dirt Bike Rell, was found dead in a car with multiple gunshot wounds when he was 23 years old.
Since Tyler’s death, it has evolved into riders taking to the streets on all sorts of bikes as an act of defiance against crime, especially by the youth.
Anyone with information on Wells’s death is asked to call Miami-Dade Crimestoppers at (305) 471-TIPS.
