Originally posted on 08/22/2016:
Popular Opera Singer Found Shot to Death in D.C. Park
Published June 16, 2010 FoxNews.com
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File photo of opera singer Don Jones. He was found shot to death in a D.C. park on June 8. (MyFoxDC.com)
Police are searching for the killer of a popular opera singer found shot to death in a D.C. park, MyFoxDC.com reported.
Last week, authorities found the body of Washington Opera singer Don Jones, but it took days before his family found out.
Jones was simply known as a John Doe for many days because he was found dead with no identification.
He is the father of two young children. He was a popular singer on stage and a popular tenor with the Washington National Opera. He was found shot to death on June 8 at Fort Dupont Park off Minnesota Avenue in Southeast D.C.
"They will find out who did this," said wife Charita Jones.
After 10 years of marriage, it is a painful and tragic end for a man with an angelic voice and a beaming smile.
"This great man with this great voice. Where did he come from? This is not something you hear every day. This voice is a voice I've never heard before. It's different from all other voices," said Charita.
Jones was a popular figure in the music and theatre scene for 14 years. He played popular roles like crab man in Porgy and Bess at the Kennedy Center and performed with Placido Domingo and appeared on Oprah Winfrey.
"That voice did something to you from the inside out. It was an inward emotion that soothed your hurting and pain,” said Charita.
His wife also remembers when he sang at the funeral of Coretta Scott King.
"It was like the greatest thing in the whole wide world. When he got the call, he said I can't breathe. Charita, I just can't breathe," said his wife.
D.C. police say he was found shot next to his green Ford Taurus near picnic tables in the park off Minnesota Avenue.
The couple just completed the adoption of two three-month-old babies.
"I have two children who no longer have a father. Nieces and nephews who don't have an uncle, who they adored. A mother who is hurting," said Charita.
Jones' voice and larger than life personality will play on in their broken hearts.
"I miss him. He was the apple of my eye and my life. It's very hard. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever experienced. Ever. The hardest thing I’ve ever had to feel in my heart," said Charita.
Detectives were back in the neighborhood Tuesday night handing out reward posters, but so far have few details on a motive or any suspects.
Jones’ funeral will be held Wednesday at St. Stephen's Church in Temple Hills.