Cold case detectives one step closer to solving murder of Florida trans woman

It's been almost six years since a 27-year-old Black transgender woman screamed for her life as a man chased her around her Pompano Beach, Florida, apartment complex, then shot her to death. But now, cold case detectives with the Broward County Sheriff's Office say they have finally found a man they believe is connected to the murder of Bree Black on July 3, 2020.

They're calling him a person of interest, but at this time, they won't release his name. Det. Andrew Gianino said Black knew him and was involved in a physical fight with him two or three days before he killed her.

"She saw who was about to shoot her," Gianino said at a news conference Tuesday about the break in the cold case. "She ran around the building screaming for help as she was shot dead in front of one of the apartment doors."

Homicide investigators believe that fight was the motive for the shooting, and they do not believe Black's identity as a trans woman was the motive for the murder.

Gianino said the person of interest is currently being held behind bars for a violent crime in an unrelated case and is known to have been involved in other violent incidents.

Black had returned home to Northwest 12th Street from a party that night before Independence Day, just to charge her phone. When she stepped outside again to wait for her ride, that's when police say the gunman confronted her, chased her, and shot her dead.

As many as 100 people were outside the complex at the time of Black's murder, Gianino said. So, it's likely someone heard her shouts for help or saw what happened. Yet so far, no witnesses have spoken up, he said, perhaps out of fear. With the person of interest now in jail, Gianino said they're asking for the public's help in hopes someone finally will come forward to solve this cold case.

"He's no longer a threat to anyone, and I think he will be no longer a threat to anyone for a very long time," Det. Gianino said.

- YouTube youtu.be

Black, who also went by the name "Nuk," was one of four transgender women in South Florida whose murders have gone unsolved. Detectives say that one small clue could crack this case and get justice for Black's family.

A niece described Black to CBS Miami as a person who loved to dance, calling her "an amazing person, really loving and caring, a very happy person... not malicious or harmful toward anyone... a big-hearted person," she said.

The county sheriff's office detectives recently erected a banner with photos of Black on it near the scene of the homicide in Pompano Beach. The posters also promise that information leading to an arrest is eligible for a reward of $10,000. The reward is being offered by Broward County Crime Stoppers and the Florida Sheriffs Association Criminal Apprehension Program.

Anyone with information that can help detectives should call Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS.