After Five Years, New Year's Eve Murder Remains Unsolved

Back in 2004, New Times wrote about the murder of R.J. Lockwood in the feature "Hardcore and Bleeding." The Virgina-native was found dead in a loft in Overtown on January 4, 2004, in what was first assumed by Miami police to be an apparent drug overdose, despite the objections from...

By Jose D. Duran

December 31, 2008

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Back in 2004, New Times wrote about the murder of R.J. Lockwood in the feature "Hardcore and Bleeding." The Virgina-native was found dead in a loft in Overtown on January 4, 2004, in what was first assumed by Miami police to be an apparent drug overdose, despite the objections from Lockwood's roommates to investigators that he was too broke to maintain a drug habit. Two days later the autopsy revealed a gunshot wound leading the Medical Examiner's Office to classify his death as a homicide, but by the time police returned to gather evidence, Lockwood's roommates had cleaned up the apartment as they had been ordered to do so by police officers the day the body was found.

Lockwood wasn't only a victim of apparent homicide, but also of a poor investigation by Miami police and to this day many questions remain unanswered: Was Lockwood expecting company on New Year's Eve? Who made the 911 call from Lockwood's phone the night of his murder? Who was the girl sobbing on the voice mail left a few days after? And why didn't Miami police listen to Lockwood's roommates when they insisted that somebody might have visited him the night of his murder?

-- Jose D. Duran

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Jose D. Duran is associate editor of Miami New Times where he primarily oversees the arts and culture and music beats. Jose joined the New Times staff in June 2008 but has been covering Miami culture since 2005. His work has also appeared in publications likeVice, Billboard, and Spin. He’s earned numerous accolades including placing first for Weekly Newspaper Contest: Business Reporting from the Florida Press Association in 2020; placing third for the Writing: Light Feature from the Florida Press Club in 2019; and placing third in Weekly Newspaper Contest: Best Obituary from the Florida Press Association in 2015. Jose holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Florida.

Contact: Jose D. Duran

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Twitter: @jose_d_duran