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Son of South Jersey NAACP official slain in Feltonville

Alejandro Rojas-Garcia, 34, was shot and killed in Feltonville. His family, including father Wilfredo Rojas, of the Gloucester County NAACP, is pleading for answers.

In his nearly 25 years as a social worker with the Philadelphia Prison System, Wilfredo Rojas strove to prepare inmates to re-enter society.

Now, the former director of the Office of Community Justice and Outreach is pleading with the public for information about his son's killer, in hopes it will lead to a lengthy jail term.

"That's the ironic thing about it," Rojas said Saturday. "I [served in] that office especially for the purpose of keeping people out of jail and reintegrating people back into the community. Now, I'm in a different state of mind."

Rojas' son, 34-year-old Alejandro Rojas-Garcia, was shot multiple times last Saturday, Jan. 24, as he drove his SUV along the 4200 block of Macalester Street in Feltonville, police said. He died at Temple University Hospital.

"We still don't know the reasons why, and no one has come forward to claim responsibility for his killing," Rojas said. "It's difficult to know that your son is gone and you don't have a reason why he's gone."

A 24-year-old passenger, whom Rojas described as his son's classmate, was also injured in the shooting and was in critical condition at Temple University Hospital. His identity was not released.

No arrest has yet been made in connection with the crime, police said Saturday.

Family members memorialized Rojas-Garcia as a hardworking father who studied advertising at the Temple University School of Media and Communication.

He recently rented an apartment in the East Falls section of the city, and had been out with friends in the early-morning hours before the shooting occurred, Rojas said.

In addition to his father, Rojas-Garcia leaves behind his mother, Aleida Garcia; a 16-year-old daughter; a 14-year-old son; and five siblings – two of them younger than 10.

"They've been asking questions – 'Daddy, what happened to our big brother?'" Rojas said. "It's painful when you've got to look them in the eye and say, 'Listen, he's not going to be with us anymore.' Someone left a big hole in this family."

Rojas-Garcia's viewing will be from 6 to 9 p.m. Monday at Baldi Funeral Home, 1331 S. Broad St.

A funeral will take place at 11 a.m. Tuesday at First Presbyterian Church, 21st and Walnut streets, followed by an interment at Ss. Peter and Paul Cemetery, 1600 S. Sproul Road, Springfield, Pa.

His family has set up an online fundraising campaign to help cover the cost of his services.

Rojas, who now serves as third vice president of the Gloucester County NAACP, said the family hopes to use the publicity not only to solve their loved one's murder, but to raise awareness about the devastating effects of violence on the community, as a whole.

"I thought this would never happen to me," he said. "I'm about to join another minority – someone who has buried their son."

Anyone with information about the crime is urged to contact Philadelphia police.