Was Murdered Ferguson Man a Grand Jury Witness?

Questions are swirling over the unexplained murder of DeAndre Joshua, found dead in his car on Tuesday morning, with some speculating that the 20-year-old may have been the victim of a retribution killing for testifying in front of the grand jury in the Michael Brown shooting case.

Joshua was found dead inside a parked car near Ferguson’s Canfield Green Apartments around 9 a.m. Tuesday, just two blocks from where Brown was gunned down by Officer Darren Wilson.

According to one resident, four individuals were overheard discussing plans to kill somebody on Monday night.

The New York Daily News reports that Joshua’s family is, “positive his death is tied to the demonstrations over a grand jury’s decision not to indict Michael Brown’s killer.”

Joshua was described as a “good kid” who was not into drugs and had a steady job.

“DeAndre Joshua, 20, fits the social profile of an eye-witness who gave a police/FBI statement and testified before the Grand Jury in the Mike Brown shooting case,” writes the Conservative Treehouse blog. “He was an employed black male, with no history of drug use or illicit behavior. He was also a friend of Dorian Johnson who is currently under protection.”

A Facebook post by Johnson, who was with Michael Brown at the time of the shooting, appears to confirm that the two knew each other.

The blog also claims that many witnesses who gave testimony to the grand jury which confirmed Officer Wilson’s version of events “were threatened by the local Canfield Greens community.”

More