Crime Stoppers: Video shows woman shot at least 14 times in front of children; fugitive suspect

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) — A Milwaukee man is on the run after shooting his girlfriend at least 14 times in front of their children.

Not only did this mother survive, but she asked to share her story on our Milwaukee Crime Stoppers segment to help catch her.

The entire shooting was filmed, which we are about to show you at the request of the victim.

*We want to warn you, this is graphic and heartbreaking.*

When we showed Nikeya Shumake’s surveillance video of the day her boyfriend shot her at least 14 times in front of their three children, she was silent at first, watching intently as he kicked her out of his van after an argument .

He knocked her down, shooting her until she fell to the ground. As she lies there, he continues to shoot her again and again. But it was when her 12-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son got out of the car to stop their father from killing her that Nikeya totally snapped.

Retraumatized, her tears flowed, her leg shaking uncontrollably.

We asked her if she wanted to stop the interview, but she said no. Because Nikeya Shumake wants you to see what happened to her from start to finish.

“I would like the whole video to be released so that people can understand from my point of view and from the point of view of my children. That way they can really see how we felt at that moment,” he said. “And knowing that someone they call dad, someone we once loved, is turning their backs on us.”

Watch as Askia Strong continues to fire while on the ground, turns to run away, then comes back and fires multiple times to finish the job.

“He just kept shooting, and I fell to the ground and lay there and let him keep shooting until he was done… after a while your body goes numb “, she said.

Numb, bleeding, she lies on the ground as he runs down the aisle. And after being shot in the head, stomach, arms and legs at close range, Nikeya Shumake gets back up.

“When I opened my eyes and saw my baby, my eyes were able to focus. So I just stood up a bit and was like oh can I stand up, then I stood up all along. Then I grabbed my babies, I saw the lady, she was just sitting there staring and I opened her door, I pushed her laundry and I was like, can you please please take me?

“What do you want to say to people who see this?” asked CBS 58’s Amanda Porterfield.

“Just report it,” Shumake said.

After fleeing down the alley near S. 24th and W. Lapham that day, July 23, Askia Strong, 32, was not arrested and is now wanted for attempted murder.

Milwaukee police believe Strong is hiding with friends and family in Wisconsin, Illinois or Indiana.

Nikeya says the two have been dating for 17 years, since they were 15. He was in and out of jail and their children, Jermiyah, Askia Jr. and Zamiyah, saw him abuse her for the past few years.

“He pulled out a gun before that, but he didn’t use it. But he just called me stupid and stuff,” she said.

Shumake says days before the shooting, the abuse got worse, as she finally broke up with him for good.

“I made life easy for him, that he couldn’t accept that life was going to get difficult. I wanted myself. I didn’t always want to think about what he wanted. If I’m doing the right thing or making him happy, I want to think about me and my feelings.

Nikeya could have been among a growing number of domestic violence victims killed in Wisconsin.

According to the latest figures from End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin, there were 80 total domestic violence homicides in the state last year. Nearly a third of them were in Milwaukee. This year, there have already been 19 domestic violence homicides in the city. Many of them are black women.

“Some girls don’t even feel like they’re victims of domestic violence because they’re like, ‘I’m defending myself, I’m defending myself,’ or they give themselves so many reasons why they’re not experiencing domestic violence. But if they take really step back and look, domestic violence takes so many different forms.

Since the shooting, Nikeya says Askia Strong has been harassing her on social media wherever he is. But she is not afraid.

“Why would I live in fear? God doesn’t want you to live in fear. He didn’t let me live to live in fear.

Nikeya says her mission is to continue to protect her children from Askia Strong and to help other women in abusive relationships get up and get out before it’s too late.

“The moment I rose from this ground, I was a hero. It was a win for me from then on,” she said.

If you are hosting Askia Strong, know someone hiding them, or have information on their whereabouts, please call Milwaukee Crime Stoppers at 414-224-8477. You can also use the P3 Tips app. Either way, submitting your tip won’t get you in trouble, no one will know who you are. It’s anonymous, and if your tip leads to an arrest, you get a cash reward.