Florida Mom Who Went from Homeless to Making Six Figures Shot Execution-Style in Front of Children
A Florida mother-of-three was fatally shot in her home on Thursday just hours after writing on Facebook about her inspirational journey from homelessness to making six figures.
Makeva Jenkins was fatally shot early Thursday morning after a masked suspect entered her Lake Worth home at around 2 a.m., according to a statement from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office obtained by PEOPLE.
“Once inside an altercation took place resulting in the female victim being shot,” police said in the statement. “The suspect fled in one of the family owned vehicle’s which was later found abandoned a short distance away.”
Jenkins died later at a hospital. CBS News reported that Jenkins was shot in the head in front of her children. However, a police spokeswoman could not confirm those details.
The death came just hours after Jenkins wrote in a Facebook post, “We overcame being homeless in 2013/2014 to reaching my six figure mark in 2015 to now making multi six figures.”
Jenkins managed a business consulting company, the Palm Beach Post reports. And in another post, Jenkins showed a receipt for more than $20,000 in deposited checks.
“May deposits were lit,” she wrote. “I can’t make this up. I work hard because I have to. My life depends on it. I don’t ever want to be homeless again. That was a bad feeling. I learned a lot through that storm.”
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Although reports have speculated that Jenkins’ newfound wealth played a role in her death, the police spokeswoman says authorities do not believe money motivated the killing.
Patricia Clarke, who knew the woman, described Jenkins as family-oriented.
“She was a very loving person,” Clarke told the Post. “She loved her kids, and loved her family and loved her husband.”
The spokeswoman say the investigation is “very active” and would not say whether police have identified a person if interest in the shooting.
