Family searches for answers in shooting death of Queens man, 23, shot outside nail salon
Relatives of a Queens man shot to death outside a neighborhood nail salon said he was a hard-working family man, and that they were clueless about why anyone would want to target him.
Joel Cobbs, 23, had no identification on him when he was shot in the head outside the Rocio & Elena salon on 163rd St. near 89th Ave. in Jamaica on Tuesday afternoon, cops said.
Family members said they didn’t learn of Cobbs’ death until early Wednesday, and have yet to hear much about what happened.
“We haven’t spoken to the detectives yet, so once we speak to them, we’ll hopefully get some more answers,” said Cobb’s aunt Melissa Trotman, 58.
“We’re gathering from basically the public, seeing comments that were made on Citizen app, trying to piece it together. We don’t know anything. He was a wonderful nephew, loving, caring. Typical 23-year-old kid.”
The killer fired five shots and hit Cobb once in the head, witnesses and police said.
Cobb was rushed to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. As of late Thursday, there were no arrests.
The victim died just five days short of his 24th birthday, which he planned to celebrate quietly with friends and family, said Gale Richards, 48, another aunt.
She said the family will probably gather together for a meal on his birthday and celebrate his life.
“That’s all we can do,” Richards said. “We just want to get him at peace, get him in the ground.
“It’s hard, unbelievable, unreal. Unexpected. Everything.”
Cobb’s aunts said he was a contractor, following in the footsteps of his father, who was a mason. “He knew the trade,” Richards said. “He knew how to lay bricks.”
The aunts added that Cobb’s death has hit the family hard because Cobb’s father, who was also a church pastor, died from cancer just four years ago.
The aunts said Cobb’s girlfriend and his mother — their sister — are inconsolable. Cobb’s paternal grandmother, who is 93, is also struggling after dealing with her son’s death and now the loss of her oldest grandson, the aunts said.
When Cobb wasn’t working, he enjoyed listening to rap music, and was plotting a return to school.
“He was so positive,” Richards said. “He was like ‘Listen, I’m doing what I gotta do.’ He was trying to go back to school. He was very talented.”
Trotman lamented the loss of yet another life to out-of-control violence.
“What can you say? It’s not something that’s not already known,” Trotman said. “It’s the guns. I feel like it’s America, land of the free. But I kind of wish they’d limit some of the rights. If having gun rights, that’s what it equates to, I don’t want them.”
Richards agreed.
“People don’t know how to deal with anger, where they act out and think violence is gonna be the key, I guess. And that’s not it,” Richards said.
“I don’t know what happened. Did someone try to grab him? He didn’t have ID on him? We need answers. I can’t be angry. We just have to pray.”
