The family of the teenager accused of killing a Philadelphia journalist and former Democratic communications director said the two had been having a sexual relationship for years before the journalist was shot and killed at home earlier this month.
Around 1:30 a.m., Kruger was shot seven times at his house in the city’s Point Breeze district. The journalist died less than an hour after being taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, according to the Inquirer.
According to police, someone broke into Kruger’s house and shot him at the bottom of his stairs before running away.
The family of 19-year-old Robert Davis, who is accused of killing lefty journalist Josh Kruger, stated that Davis and Kruger started dating while Davis was just 15 years old.
According to Davis’ family, the relationship was mostly about sex and drugs, and Kruger, 39, allegedly threatened to publish sexually graphic pictures of the teen in the past.
Police filed an arrest warrant for Davis after being directed to him by surveillance footage from the vicinity of Kruger’s home and information from the journalist’s friends and family.
Kruger had worked for the local government before becoming a freelance writer for numerous newspapers and online publications.
As the director of communications for the Office of Homeless Services, he oversaw social media for Democratic Mayor Jim Kenney.
Along with advocating for LGBTQ rights, Kruger was also outspoken about having HIV.
Detectives thought the gunshot resulted from either a drug-related or domestic dispute not long after the death.
Methamphetamine was apparently discovered by investigators in Kruger’s bedroom, and “unsettling” text conversations between Kruger and a former partner were also discovered.
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