51-year-old man identified as Charlotte’s seventh homicide victim since Jan. 1

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police identified a man who was fatally shot in northwest Charlotte on Friday afternoon as 51-year-old Thomas Louis Beatty Jr.

Police said the shooting was drug-related and Beatty knew the suspect. No arrest has been announced.

Beatty, the city’s seventh homicide victim since Jan. 1, was shot in a yard in the 5400 block of Morning Breeze Lane, off Old Mount Holly Road and Rozzelles Ferry Road. Medic treated Beatty for life-threatening injuries and took him to Carolinas Medical Center, where he died.

Late Friday, CMPD announced it is moving more officers to areas where violent crime has recently occurred. Officers will focus on suspicious activity and contact known offenders to try to curb the violence.

Anyone with information about Friday’s shooting is asked to call police at 704-432-TIPS (8477) or Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600.

This story was originally published January 14, 2017 at 12:45 PM with the headline "51-year-old man identified as Charlotte’s seventh homicide victim since Jan. 1."