Gunned down: Young dad, small-biz owner, and 'inspiration'
Cameron Robertson was a young man who stayed out of trouble, graduated college, returned to his hometown of Philadelphia and tutored students, then used his entrepreneurial wits to become a small-business owner.
Cameron Robertson was a young man who stayed out of trouble, graduated college, returned to his hometown of Philadelphia and tutored students, then used his entrepreneurial wits to become a small-business owner.
He was also the father of a 3-year-old girl, whom he adored.
On Monday afternoon, Robertson, 26, was walking from an auto-body shop near Berkley and Greene Streets in Germantown, on his way back to his own auto-repair shop when someone gunned him down. He was pronounced dead a short while later at Einstein Medical Center.
His family has no idea who shot him or why.
Police are still searching for the shooter, a spokeswoman said Friday.
Chief Inspector Scott Small told reporters Monday night that Robertson was with another man, who suddenly began shooting just after 5:15 p.m.
"The shooter stood over him and continued firing shots," Small said. At least seven shell casings from a large-caliber semiautomatic gun were found at the scene. Robertson was shot multiple times, including in the head.
He was taken by private vehicle to Einstein Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 5:29 p.m. The shooter was last seen running west on Berkley and north on Greene, Small said.
Robertson's sister, Kirsten Robertson, 30, like other family members, when asked if she had any clue who shot her brother, said: "No idea."
"I never had to worry or be skeptical about him and the streets," she said.
After graduating from Cheyney University in 2012, her brother served for a year in AmeriCorps, tutoring and mentoring students at Universal Audenreid Charter High School in South Philadelphia, said Darryl Bundrige, executive director of City Year Philadelphia.
About two years ago, Robertson and his business partner, Phil Coleman, opened Dependable Automotive Repair on Stenton Avenue near Germantown Avenue in Logan. About a month ago, the shop was renamed Best Choice Collision and Automotive Repair, Coleman, 40, said.
"He was like a little brother," said Coleman.
Cynthia James, 41, a bookkeeper at the shop, added: "He was a man with a vision, an entrepreneur, a good father who spoke of his daughter daily."
On Monday, Robertson went to work at the shop, as he always did, his family and coworkers said.
That afternoon, he was walking from another auto-body shop at Berkley and Greene, which he and Coleman used to own, back to Best Choice, when he was gunned down near Germantown Avenue.
Family members and Robertson's girlfriend, Shawneya Lee, said they were not aware of any disputes Robertson had, and don't believe he was shot during a robbery.
Robertson was most recently living in an apartment on Henry Avenue in Roxborough. Lee and their daughter, Riley, 3, live in North Philadelphia.
Lee said Friday she and Robertson were living separately, but planned to buy a house together.
Under a recent Facebook photo of him and Riley, Robertson wrote: "Treat her like a princess so one day she can be somebody's queen. Happy fathers day everybody."
Robertson and his daughter share the same birthday: March 1.
Robertson grew up in a twin house on the 1400 block of Widener Place in Ogontz, the youngest of five kids - four boys, one girl - to parents Kelvin and Wana Robertson.
Kelvin Robertson said he worked as an electronic engineer for different companies while raising his kids. There were some tough times financially.
"We were struggling, but I taught my kids to have ambition, and Cameron had great ambition," said his father, 59.
As a boy, Cameron Robertson swept barbershop floors. Then he sold water, candy and socks in his neighborhood. As a teenager, he helped sell T-shirts outside concert venues.
"He was just a good kid all his life," his father said. "He was an athlete, he was an achiever in school."
Robertson graduated in 2008 from Delaware Valley Charter High School in Logan, where he played on the basketball team.
On Sundays during high school, he went to church with his aunt, Crystal Robertson-Cooper. She drove from her home in Montgomery County to Ogontz, picked him up and brought him to Triumph Baptist Church in Nicetown, where she was then an associate minister. He also played basketball on the church team.
"This is the child that did everything right," said his aunt, a retired physician who had worked for Temple Physicians Inc. in North Philadelphia and most recently at her own practice, Robertson Medical Group in Strawberry Mansion.
"He stayed out of trouble, he never had any police contact," she said. "He was helping out in the community, always doing community work, always trying to find ways to make it better for other people in the community."
It was at Cheyney where Robertson met Lee.
Lee, 26, was in her house when Robertson's cousin called and said, "Cam was shot." She, her mother and Riley rushed to the hospital, but Robertson was already dead. She's now left confused over what happened.
His sister, Kirsten, said: "My brother didn't deserve this. For him to do so much good and to be such an inspiration, he didn't."
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