In Philadelphia, Josh Kruger, 39—an award-winning gay journalist and former city communications specialist—was fatally shot inside his residence, Philadelphia Gay News reported.
Kruger's body was discovered outside his row home on Oct. 2 after an unknown person entered his residence and shot him multiple times. Kruger was shot seven times in the chest and abdomen, according to authorities.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Kruger recently wrote on Facebook that someone came to his house searching for their boyfriend—"a man I've never met once in my entire life." The person called themselves "Lady Diabla, the She-Devil of the Streets" and threatened him, Kruger wrote.
CNN noted that Kruger had recently covered issues such as LGBTQ+ rights, homelessness, HIV and addiction in publications like The Philadelphia Citizen and The Philadelphia Inquirer. One of his most recent stories was a tribute to Temple University President JoAnne Epps, who passed away in September.
Kruger—an Anglo-Catholic Episcopalian and a parishioner of St. Mark's Church who loved biking—won awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association (which gave him the Edith Hughes Emerging Journalist Award), according to his LinkedIn page.
"We are shocked and saddened by Josh's death," Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said in a statement.
The District Attorney's LGBTQ+ Advisory Committee said, "Many of us knew Josh Kruger as a comrade who never stopped advocating for queer Philadelphians living on the margins of society. His struggles mirrored so many of ours—from community rejection, to homelessness, to addiction, to living with HIV, to poverty—and his recovery, survival, and successes showed what's possible when politicians and elected leaders reject bigotry and work affirmatively to uplift all people."
—Andrew Davis
