Manchester Man Killed in Hartford's 39th Homicide Of 2022

HARTFORD, CT — As the year winds down, Hartford police are investigating yet another homicide in a calendar year where that has been a troubling trend.

According to WFSB Channel 3, police swarmed the intersection of Canton and Donald streets early Wednesday morning after a report of an un responsive man in a car.

As police showed up, the man was seen hanging outside a car window with gunshot wounds, WFSB reported.

WVIT Channel 30 has identified the victim as 23-year-old Jose Rodriguez of Manchester and the vehicle Rodriguez was found in was stolen. WVIT reports the victim was found at 1:49 a.m. Wednesday.

It's thought he was a passenger in the car and someone else was driving, WVIT reported.

WFSB reports this is the capital city's 39 homicide of 2022.

In press conference streamed by WVIT, Hartford Police Chief Jason Thody said the department is chasing leads in a process that has become all too familiar this year.

"The vehicle, we are unable to tell how long its been here. We're not convinced the crime happened here. So its under investigation. There are some leads we are following up on," Thody said.

He said it was "very clearly" a targeted homicide.

"We do have some leads that we're following up on. We don't have a person of interest at this point," Thody said.

Regarding Hartford's homicide uptick in 2022, Thody said non-fatal shootings are down, but homicides are up compared to a year ago.

But, Thody said, this trend is something affecting cities across the country.

"Violence is up. It's not just Hartford. It's nationwide. Violent crime is on the rise," he said.

Thody said the upward homicide trend is tied to how people are settling disputes these days — with guns.

And that, according to Thody, is difficult to combat from a law enforcement perspective.

"It's a nonstop effort. We're seeing personal disputes all over the place," he said. "We can't be in apartments. We can't be in hotel rooms. We can't be everywhere at once. It's a battle everyone is fighting right now."

For the full, WFSB Channel 3 report, click on this link.

For the full, WVIT Channel 30 report, click on this link.