Man arrested in fatal shooting at Melbourne gas station

MELBOURNE, Fla. — A 19-year-old man was arrested Thursday in the fatal shooting of a 21-year-old man earlier this year at a gas station, the Melbourne Police Department said.

Devale Eugene Rivers Jr. fatally shot Twonnie Pollard on July 27 during a fight in the parking lot of the Sunoco at Eber Boulevard and South Babcock Street, Melbourne police Lt. Trevor Shaffer said.

Rivers was arrested near Pace Drive Northwest and Gillen Avenue Northwest in Palm Bay, Shaffer said.

He was booked into the Brevard County Jail on charges of second-degree murder and shooting from a vehicle. He is being held without bail and has pleaded not guilty.

TeddieAnn Stewart, Pollard's mother, said she didn't realize how many lives her son had touched until his ended.

"Those (who) stood up for my son, I want to say thanks," she said. "I lost a son, but I gained so many other sons and daughters through this, and I'm blessed today."

Stewart said she hopes her son's death will prevent others.

"I think a lot of our young people don't know how to resolve issues, and that is one of the greatest things we are trying to understand," she said. "We have to stop the violence. We have to stop the hate."

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Stewart said she is part of Push Back Community Alliance, a church-led effort aimed at curbing gun violence in the area.

"A lot of the community was affected by this event," she said. "This is an avenue to help us reach those young people -- especially our young men -- to understand lives matter. You can't just take a life."

The organization will hold an anti-gun violence rally at 3 p.m. Oct. 27 
on East University Boulevard near Main Street.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Melbourne police Detective Johnny Bynum at 321-608-6461.

Cox Media Group