Lang
7/21/21
Cedar Rapids Police have identified the 15-year-old girl found dead with a gunshot wound inside a vehicle on Tuesday.
The body of Tyliyah L. Whitis of Peoria, Illinois was found after police received word just after 6:15am of a single vehicle accident at the Hawthorne Hills Apartment Complex in the 2200 block of C Street Southwest.
Arriving officers discovered a vehicle with extensive damage and Whitis deceased in the driver’s seat. Whitis had what appeared to be a gunshot wound or wounds. It’s unclear whether it was the crash or the gunshot or shots that killed her.
KCRG TV-9 reports that an employee at the apartment complex called in the shooting, and said that the victim was not a resident there.
Cedar Rapids Police have not yet received word on the cause of death from the State Medical Examiner’s office. A preliminary investigation has led authorities to believe it was a targeted incident.
Police also announced Wednesday that vehicle was registered to one of Whitis’ family members.