COLD CASE: Who killed Fredrick Pirtle? Shot while walking to his parents’ Seaside home

SEASIDE, Calif. (KION-TV)- Seaside Police said Frederick Pirtle had no gang ties. Yet during the early morning hours of August 26th, 2017, gang members in Seaside spotted him and may have confused him for a rival gang member.

"Unfortunately, the area where he was shot is a crip area, which is a black gang," said Seaside Detective Jacob Sweyb. "He is a black male walking down the street, did have dreads at the time. We believe a rival gang was in the area, possibly looking for someone to assault."

Pirtle was shot at about 3:45 a.m. after neighbors reported hearing gunshots. Police drove through, found no casings, and left. Two hours later, a neighbor woke up and spotted Pirtle lying between the sidewalk and the gutter.

"If anybody can give us any information or has any leads resulting in a most likely norteno gang member who owned a ford mustang at the time," said Seaside Detective Jacob Sweyb.

Because anything could help detectives find the person responsible for taking Pirtle’s life, his older brother Xavier Pirtle still holds hope for closure.

"I have relatives who call me and ask, 'Have you heard anything more.' The person responsible hasn’t been brought to trial for this and is out there and could be hurting more people," said Xavier.

Pirtle was a handyman who meant so much to many Seaside people.

"He loved his family very, very much," said Xavier. "He loved cars. He loved music, and he loved his work. He actually loved doing what he did. He basically spent a lot of time doing things for other people."

The morning Pirtle was shot, he had headed to his parents' house. His parents had recently passed, and Frederick had often checked on the empty house. Sadly, he would never make it back to his wife.