SOUTH HOLLAND, Ill. (WLS) — A reward is being offered in the murder of a high school basketball player.
Loved ones of Davell Holden made a heartfelt plea for justice on Wednesday, buoyed by the announcement of a new reward and the strong support from their community.
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Holden,16, was a student at Thornwood High School and was about to start his junior year.
He was shot and killed on Saturday evening near 160th and Drexel in South Holland, police said. Details surrounding the shooting remain unclear.
The Village of South Holland and St. Sabina Priest Father Michael Pfleger are offering up to $10,000 for information leading to an arrest.
“I still don’t fully understand what took place,” said his mother, Angela Birts. “All I know is he left home, went to a location, and then I received a devastating call about him being shot—something I never imagined could happen. Everyone is honoring my son, recognizing the amazing young man he was. I regret that I only had him for 16 years, but I cherish every one of those years.”
One by one, loved ones arrived to a vigil Wednesday night with broken hearts, holding balloons and each other in a poignant show of strength.
“My baby was loved by so many people, and this is just a testament of it,” Brits said.
The bittersweet remembrance was held on the grounds of Thornwood High School where Holden stood tall on the basketball court and in life.
READ MORE | Boy, 16, killed in South Holland shooting ID’d as Thornwood High School basketball player
“Purity, honesty, and effort. Those defined his life. Those were his core values,” friend Kay’Shaun Thomas said.
Holden was set to start his junior year next week.
“Who and why? Why would somebody want to do this to my son?” Brits said. “My son didn’t do anything to anybody.”
An honors student who excelled in math and English, Holden had dreams of playing college basketball…
At the vigil, some attendees wore his jersey number #21, paying tribute as the light faded, symbolizing his limitless future that was tragically halted. His potential was lost in an instant, leaving his loved ones unable to understand why.
“It’s heartbreaking, but it’s eye-opening,” Thomas said. “We gotta be better. We gotta mature. We gotta grow.”
The South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force is investigating.
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