Vigil held to honor memory of teen killed over Cartier sunglasses

DETROIT (FOX 2) - A young man gunned down over a pair of designer sunglasses. 
    
Tae'o Garrett was a hard worker - with promise and a loving family - one that came together with members of the community to honor his life Friday at Balduck Park.

The 18-year-old was killed last weekend at a gas station at Seven Mile and Outer Drive over his Cartier sunglasses.

"This hurts worse than anything I've had to go through," said his grandmother Brenda Lucy. "Worse than anything."

Tae'o was a 2018 graduate of Madison Preparatory High School and was getting ready for the next phase of his life.

"He was getting ready to go to college in the fall, he was working, he was doing all the right stuff," Lucy said. "We were getting ready to get him a car so he could start his college and everything."

Mario Buthia, the 20-year-old suspected gunman, is in custody. But that is little solace for Tae'o's family and friends.

"He was the best employee, I loved him, I am so glad he came to our job," said Mya Drakes, Tae'o's manager at work. "He made my life better, it was a blessing for me to every meet him."

The crowd released red and black balloons, Tae'o's favorite colors into the air, and they wore T-shirts with his picture.

"To see him every day, he would always smile," said Michael Jenkins, a friend and co-worker. "He was never in a bad mood, everything just made him happier. We could get a thousand orders and he would knock it out like it's nothing."

"I'm so sorry this happened to him, he was a good kid didn't do anything to anybody," Drakes said. "This is not supposed to be him."

As it turns out the suspect who shot Tae'o, didn’t even take the sunglasses.

"If he would have asked him for them he would have given them to him," Lucy said. "That's the background he came from."

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"I'm so sorry his life was taken over some nonsense," Drakes said.

"I'm just aching inside," Lucy said. "I love him so much and I'm going to miss him."

Detroit police are still looking for three additional people connected to this case, if you have any information contact them at (313) 267-4600 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP.