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ST. LOUIS (FinalCall.com)—Final good byes to Darren Seals, Jr., a prominent youth leader of the Ferguson movement for justice after the death of Mike Brown, Jr., are scheduled for the church where much of the organizing for the movement took place.
He will never, however, be forgotten by his comrades in struggle nor his family.
The 29-year-old was found with his Jeep Wrangler engulfed in flames in Riverview, Mo., another suburb of St. Louis, and died from a gunshot wound to his head, according to authorities. His funeral was scheduled for Sept. 17 at Greater St. Marks Church in Ferguson, Mo., at Final Call press time.
According to Darren Seals, Sr., the family has not heard from county police or any investigative agency. He feels the crime scene was sloppily handled with bullet casings and the door of the Jeep left in the lot.
“I’m so proud of my son for becoming who he is,” said Mr. Seals, Sr. “I spent 20 years in prison and to see him do better than me meant so much. He didn’t back down from nothing. And he knew he made people angry because he spoke his mind, so he knew something might happen to him. He said to me, ‘Daddy, if anything happens to me or I get killed know that the police did it.’ I believe him,” said Mr. Seals, Sr.
“This is a weak and sloppy, so-called investigation,” he told The Final Call in exclusive interview.
Witnesses at the apartment complex where the jeep was found told The Final Call that the fire department arrived shortly after midnight on Labor Day not at 1:50 a.m. as reported by the Riverview police department. The death is being investigated by the St. Louis County police department.
Darren, Jr. was one of the first to respond in Ferguson, Mo., after the fatal shooting of Michael Brown Jr. on August 9, 2014. He was a founder of Hands Up United, a grassroots group started after young Brown’s death that fought for justice and police reform.
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