With tears streaming down their faces, Antonio Mason’s family members spoke about the kindness of their brother and son at a press conference Tuesday.
The message was simple: If anyone knows anything about Mason’s death, he or she should come forward.
“Tony was a real good person, y’all,” said 36-year-old Alonzo Mason, Antonio’s brother. “Everybody that knew him loved him; he just had an attachment with so many different people.”
On July 27, Mason, 35, was killed at a family gathering after being shot in the chest by armed, masked home invaders, according to a press release. He was carrying his 11-month-old daughter, Zy’mya. The infant was shot in the arm, but she is alive.
At the press conference, Mason’s brother, Adaryll Ferguson, held Zy’mya as he spoke about the family’s struggles.
“I want you to look at my niece; I want you to look at what they did to her,” he said. “If you are out there watching, and you know the people responsible for this, quit holding it in. Make a phone call, let somebody know. Turn these cowards in.”
Mason’s mother, Judy Mason, talked about how her son moved to Gainesville and started turning over a new leaf.
“He was getting a good job, he was getting to see his kids; everything was coming together for him,” she said.
Gainesville Police spokesman Officer Ben Tobias said the people who killed Mason have not been found yet.
“We are expending every resource we have available to try to identify and capture those responsible for this horrendous act of violence,” Tobias said.
About 100 feet from where the shooting took place, a man emerges from behind yellow caution tape to hug a woman and then hand her a sleeping baby in early morning of July 28.
