FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — It wasn’t uncommon for Tamika Hoy to walk from her parents’ home to her favorite eatery on McKinley and Normal Avenues in central Fresno.
With each outing, she’d always return home.
“She’d done that many times before,” said Hoy’s father who did not disclosure his identity to protect his privacy.
But this time was different.
“She was coming back home and that’s when it happened at 2:15,” said Hoy’s mother.
Fresno Police arrived shortly after 2 o’clock Thursday afternoon to assist with a medical call of a woman lying in the alleyway on Normal Avenue and Mayfair Boulevard in Central Fresno.
“25-year-old Tamika Hoy down in the alleyway suffering from what appeared to be an apparent gunshot wound to her upper head,” said Lt. Brian Valles with Fresno Police.
Hoy was rushed to Community Regional Medical Center in critical condition.
When Hoy’s parents arrived, her mother demanded to see her daughter.
“They let me in and I just broke down and cried,” said Hoy’s mother.
“They took my child away from me,” said her mother.
Fresno Police updated the public days later and said the biggest challenge investigators face in Hoy’s case is receiving limited cooperation.
“Detectives have been in that area since Thursday, January 22nd. We’ve received very little assistance from any witnesses in that incident,” said Lt. Valles.
Police revealed while Hoy was walking through the alleyway she was approached by an unknown amount of individuals and was shot.
“It hurts so much. They just don’t know they ripped my heart out.”
Before Hoy walked out the door that day, the mother and daughter exchanging what would become their final embrace.
“I hugged my baby and I told her I loved her. She hugged me back and said, ‘Mama, I love you, too,’ and that’s the last words I spoke to my daughter,” said Hoy’s mother.
Fresno Police says it will continue to canvass the area for any surveillance footage as investigators search for a possible motive.
Tamika’s family have organized a GoFundMe to assist with funeral expenses.
