NEW ORLEANS (WWL-TV) – Friends and family of Thomas Rolfes are pleading for information about his murder, one month ago this week.
His mother Julie Rolfes made the painful journey from St. Louis to remind people there is a $30,000 Crimestoppers reward for information that leads to her son’s killer.
“He was a wonderful, wonderful young man,” Rolfes said. “If there is anyone out there that saw anything, even if it might be the smallest of things, I want his life to mean more than just a death on the street.”
Tuesday, family members placed fresh flowers at the spot where the 25-year-old Tulane graduate lost his life.
He was shot and killed May 7, near the Central City neighborhood in what police say was an apparent robbery.
His family and friends gathered at the South Claiborne Avenue gas station where he was seen on video buying bottled water about an hour before his body was found in field a block away.
Rolfes, who was living in South Carolina, was in town to meet his fiancée Liz Fried and plan their wedding. They met and fell in love at Tulane University.
“He loved this city,” Fried said. “He truly loved this city. We had our future all planned out. The rest of our lives together. The future is never going to happen.”
NOPD lead homicide detective Andrew Waldron said they have received some tips already and the tips have been beneficial.
“We know through those tips and through the community’s involvement that other people in direct vicinity of this neighborhood have information regarding this case,” Waldron said. “We continue to work on this everyday, at all hours, and work is being done on this case as we speak.”
“I really want this person to be found,” Julie Rolfes said. “I want to save every other mother and father from this heartache.”
The night of his death, Rolfes spent time with friends at an Uptown bar.
How he got separated from his friends, what happened between the bar and the convenience store across town, who ultimately killed him and why are questions that haunt his family.
“I lie awake every night wondering how he spent the last hour of his life,” Fried said. “Why did this have to happen to such an incredible human being.”
“Was he scared? Was he too brave? Was he trying to walk to the street for help? All of those things really weigh on your heart,” Julie Rolfes said.
The Crimestoppers reward now stands at $30,000 for information that leads to an arrest in the Rolfes murder.
If you can help, please call Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111.
