Over five years since the murder of a transgender woman in Pompano Beach, Broward Sheriff’s deputies have identified a person of interest — but they still need the public’s help if they want to solve the case.

Bree “Nuk” Black, 27, was shot dead a little before 10:30 p.m. on July 3, 2020 outside of an apartment complex in the 200 block of Northwest 12th Street. It was a crowded Friday night during during July 4th weekend, and deputies believe more than 100 potential witnesses were in the area, but few cooperated or came forward.

At a news conference Tuesday in the same place where Black was killed, deputies announced that a man who is currently incarcerated in Florida is a person of interest in her death. The man knew Black and had a physical fight with her two days before her death, BSO Cold Case Detective Andrew Gianino said. He would not reveal the identity of the man or what the fight was about, but said that Black’s death was not related to her transgender identity.

On the night of her death, Black had left a gender reveal party to charge her phone, Gianino said. She returned to her apartment, charged her phone, then went outside to wait for a ride while FaceTiming with a friend. Towards the end of the call, her killer approached her. She ran around the building, screaming for help, and was shot to death in front of one of the apartment doors.

Deputies believe that “a number of people” witnessed Black’s death and the physical fight two days prior. Some might have information about the whereabouts of the murder weapon, Gianino said.

The newly identified person of interest has a history of violence in the area and is currently serving a sentence for a different violent crime, Gianino said, though he would not provide specifics on the length of the sentence. He hopes that this discovery will help encourage witnesses to come forward who might have otherwise been fearful of retaliation.

“It’s always a challenge to come out to the public and get that one perhaps apprehensive witness who’s seen exactly what happened, but is afraid to come forward,” Gianino said. “So that’s why we’re here today, to ensure the public that the person of interest is incarcerated, is no longer a threat. And I think that he will be no longer a threat to anyone for a very long time.”

Black’s niece, who asked that her name not be used, still lives in the area where Black was killed.

She told reporters after the news conference that she and Black were very close and essentially grew up together, raised by her grandmother. Black was “a big-hearted person” who loved dancing and having fun, she said. But she still doesn’t know what took place that night; the surveillance cameras across the street don’t work, and no one in the neighborhood came forward.

“That kind of made us angry because we know that people seen it and they’re not coming forward or saying anything,” she said.

Pompano Beach Commissioner Beverly Perkins, who was also at Tuesday’s news conference, said she knew Black before her death, just from walking around the neighborhood.

“Everybody loved Bree,” Perkins said, adding that whenever Bree was around, “it was just a lot of love.”

She reiterated Gianino’s remarks about needing someone to come forward. Officials with Broward Crime Stoppers and the Florida Sheriffs Association are offering a combined $10,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest.

“A lot of people feel if I talk, if I say something, I will get in trouble or someone will try to harm me,” Perkins said. “But you have to look after the person that is deceased and the family that’s grieving. Just do it on their behalf. You know, I know a lot of people say, “Well, you’ll snitch. You won’t talk. Well, sometimes you need to snitch. You know, if it’s going to help a grieving family, I think we should do it.”

Anyone with information should contact Gianino at 954-321-4376 or Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS (8477).

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