UPDATED: Galloway Man Shot and Killed Thursday Morning Was Always Helping Kids, Son Says

A Galloway Township man described by his son as "too nice" and "someone who was always trying to help keep kids off the street," was shot and killed at the end of his driveway in what Galloway Police called an isolated incident at 2 a.m. Thursday morning, April 4.

Wally Delos Santos suffered from at least one fatal gunshot wound, Acting Atlantic County Prosecutor James P. McClain said. He was shot at his home on Falling Leaf Court.

He was pronounced dead at the scene at 2:26 a.m. He turned 51 today.

According to Sgt. Donna Higbee, he was shot while standing at the end of his driveway. He was the only person targeted in the shooting, Higbee said.

An autopsy will be conducted later today, McClain said.

At this time, there is no suspect in custody. The Atlantic County Prosecutor's Major Crimes Unit and Galloway Township Police are investigating.

Wally Delos Santos' stepdaughter, Anna De La Cruz, was awake at the time he was shot. She heard the gunshot, according to Santos' daughter, Maranyeli Santos, and the two discovered their fahter had been shot.

According Maranyeli Santos, the family doesn't know why Wally Santos was out, but it wasn't unusual.

"He could have been checking on his businesses, or the old house in Atlantic City," said Maranyeli Santos, a student at Atlantic Cape Community College. "He was out a lot."

He was also a party promoter for Spanish singers, Maranyeli Santos said, and he may have been promoting a party.

Wally's son, Waldy, described his father as being "too nice."

"He was always trying to help people," Waldy Santos said outside the home Thursday morning. "He was always trying to help people. He was always giving kids advice and trying to keep kids off the street.

"It's not fair that this would happen to a guy that helps people, that he would get shot over who knows what."

Wally Santos owned the Wally's barber shops in Atlantic City. He was born in the Dominican Republic. The family lived in Atlantic City for 10 years before moving to Galloway eight years ago.

"He knew hundreds of people," Waldy Santos said. "I want to know who would do something like this. Everyone loves my dad.

"I'm just blank. I don't know what to think."

Wally Santos lived with his wife, daughter, stepdaughter and his granddaughter.

His stepdaughter is one of the few people who saw or heard anything early Thursday morning.

Residents on the street, a cul de sac just off Ash Avenue, reported not to have heard anything during the overnight hours.

One neighbor reported his dog was barking, and that when he got out of bed, he saw police lights. No one interviewed by Galloway Patch reported to have heard gunshots.

"I didn't hear anything at all," said Wayne Birts, a neighbor who described the family as quiet. "I've lived here since October and I haven't seen or heard anything from them."

No evidence of a crime scene remained on Thursday, as Maranyeli Santos stood outside with a close friend and her cousin. As the day wore on, the home continued to receive visitors in the form of family and friends.

"Everyone loved him," Maranyeli Santos said.

Anyone with information pertaining to this homicide is asked to call the Major Crimes Unit at 609-909-7666 or the Galloway Township Police Department at 609-652-3705.

An audio copy of the EMS call, provided by Mike Greb, can be heard here.

According to Galloway Patch’s archives, the last shooting in Galloway Township was reported on Sunday night, July 8, 2012, when an Atlantic City man was shot in the area of Second Avenue.

Two shootings were reported within one week in May of 2011, and arrests were made in both those incidents. Two murders were reported in the township for all of 2011, and one was reported for all of 2010, according to statistics from the uniform crime reports for those years.