Winston-Salem State University football player killed at Wake Forest party
By Kevin Duffey
Published:
Tragedy has struck the Winston-Salem State University community.
Najee Ali Baker, 21, was shot and killed at an on-campus party at nearby Wake Forest late Friday, according to Wake Forest University President Nathan Hatch.
“At approximately 1 a.m. this morning, Najee Ali Baker, a student at Winston-Salem State University, was shot during an altercation at a party on campus in The Barn,” Hatch said in a statement. “I am deeply saddened to report that the student later succumbed to his injuries. My thoughts and prayers this morning are with the student’s family, friends and classmates, as well as our Wake Forest community.”
Baker, from Brooklyn, N.Y., was taken to a local hospital where he later died. He was majoring in physical education, and he was a walk-on on the football team.
“I’m looking forward to contributing at Winston-Salem State,” Baker told the Winston-Salem Journal last March when he committed. “I’ve spent a lot of time in Charlotte and wanted to get back down south, so I’m very excited about this move.”
The Barn hosted a party for the Pi Omicron chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority to help kickoff the new semester, according to a report from WXII News 12.
WSSU is a Division II program and competes in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA).
Police are still searching for a suspect.
A graduate of the University of Florida and founder of Saturday Down South, Kevin is a college football enthusiast.
