'Everybody loved him': Rickey Walker's nephew speaks about his uncle's shooting death

Rickey Walker saved a man from drowning, was well-liked by co-workersand was the comedian in his close-knit family.

Who would kill him?

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That question has stumped Halifax Regional Police since the shooting death of the Dartmouth man early in the morning on Sept. 1. Police believe there may be witnesses, prompting the province to offer a $150,000 reward for information leading to a conviction.

Walker's nephew and godson Brandon Walker hopes the offer of cash brings closure.

'It never gets easy'

"You've just got to hold on to the hope that one day that person responsible would be found and brought to justice," hesaid.

This week, hespoke to CBC News as he looked around the north-end Dartmouth schoolyard wherehis uncle called 911 himself to report he'd been shot just before 3 a.m. that night. Behind the school, there's an unlit walking path connecting Highfield Park Drive, where his unclelived, to a parking circle thatwas searched by police in the aftermath.

Walker triednot to think about the violence as he gatheredhis thoughts.

"It never gets easy," he said. "To not have him here now is heartbreaking."

Saved a man

RickeyWalker, 48, was a call-centre employee. He brought his family together with home-cooked meals, and cracked them up with well-timed jokes.

Just blocks from where he was gunned down, he had saved a life. In 1998, Walkerrescued a man drowning in Albro Lakeand received a St. John Ambulance award for his selfless act.

He was proud to call this tight-knit, working class neighbourhood home.

"He was just an overall great guy, whether it was to our family, very pleasant to his co-workers, everybody loved him," Brandon Walker said.

Motive unknown

Police have said little about the case, including whether it was a random act.

Walker doesn't believehis uncle was targeted and wonders if he hadbeen on a late-night coffee run.

"There wasn't any group that I could think of or an individual that felt hatred towards Rickey," said Walker, a 26-year-old community worker.

"For somebody that didn't drink, didn't do drugs, it's kind of hard to think of anyone that would want to do that to my uncle," he said.

Speaking up

The quest for justice is why Walkeris sharing his story even though some family members would rather he stay silent. He sayssomebody had to speak up and hopes that will pushsomeone with information tobreaktheir silence.

"There's an uncle of mine resting, hopefully, peacefully, knowing the person responsible is going to be found," he said.