Crime & Safety
Dead Body Found Near Railroad Park Identified
An investigation is underway after a 21-year-old man was found dead near Birmingham's Railroad Park early Tuesday.
BIRMINGHAM, AL - The Birmingham Police Department is now investigating a possible homicide of a man found shot and killed near Railroad Park early Tuesday morning. The discovery was made at 5:45 a.m. in the 1600 block of First Avenue South.
The Jefferson County Coroner’s Office said the victim is an adult black male. According to an Alabama Media Group report, Sgt. Johnny Williams said at one point they believe he could be a transient. However, the victim has been identified as Ricardo Phillip Watkins. He was 21 and listed an eastern Birmingham address.
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Watkins was reportedly found by a passerby on the sidewalk of First Avenue South. He was pronounced dead on the scene at 6:22 a.m. It wasn’t immediately clear whether Watkins was killed there or killed somewhere else and dropped of there.
Photo by Michael Seale/Patch
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