ROANOKE, VA — A family already devastated by tragedy is now mourning a second unimaginable loss. Isaac “Ike” Lamonte Cunningham, 43, has been identified by a family member as the victim in a fatal shooting that occurred in Roanoke early Sunday morning. This heartbreaking development comes just over a year after Cunningham’s 15-year-old son, Isaac Cunningham Jr., was also killed in a shooting.
According to the Roanoke Police Department, officers responded to reports of gunfire in the 200 block of 12th Street SW at approximately 12:28 a.m. on August 3, 2025. When officers arrived on the scene, they found a man suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Despite emergency response efforts, the victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
Family members later confirmed the deceased as Isaac Lamonte Cunningham, known affectionately by those close to him as “Ike.” Friends and relatives describe him as a man working to find peace in the wake of losing his son, a man whose life had been irrevocably changed by grief just a year prior.
In June 2024, Cunningham’s teenage son, 15-year-old Isaac Cunningham Jr., was gunned down in a separate incident that left the Roanoke community reeling. His death had a profound impact on the family, and many say Ike struggled every day with the pain of that loss.
No arrests have been made in Sunday’s shooting, and police have not released any information regarding a suspect or possible motive. Investigators are currently working to piece together the events that led up to the deadly incident. The Roanoke Police Department is urging anyone who may have information to come forward and contact them at 540-344-8500.
Detectives spent several hours canvassing the scene in the early morning hours, collecting evidence and speaking to potential witnesses. The area was closed off with police tape as forensic teams worked under floodlights, documenting the crime scene.
This marks yet another chapter in Roanoke’s struggle with rising gun violence—a crisis that has claimed far too many lives and left families torn apart. Community leaders have renewed calls for intervention, support services, and programs aimed at stemming the tide of gun-related deaths in the city.
Friends, neighbors, and loved ones have expressed an outpouring of grief on social media, sharing memories of Ike and extending prayers to the family.
As the community grapples with the loss of a father and son to gun violence within just over a year, many are pleading for change—not just in policy, but in hearts and minds.
Anyone with tips or knowledge of the shooting is asked to help bring justice and closure by contacting authorities. Anonymous tips can also be submitted through Roanoke Crime Line.
For now, a grieving family faces yet another burial, and a city is once again left to reckon with the pain of preventable loss.