Ryan Hughes joined CBS News Philadelphia in June 2022. He previously worked at WPTV in West Palm Beach, Florida, where he's covered stories ranging from weeks on the Surfside condo collapse to the impact of Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas and the Super Bowl in Miami.
Investigators in Camden, New Jersey, are hoping newly released surveillance photos will help crack a mysterious homicide. A 51-year-old man was found badly injured and his death is now ruled a homicide, but what actually happened remains unclear.
His family is now making an emotional plea for answers.
Jade Haas is thinking of all the things she would love to say to her uncle, 51-year-old Thomas Haas.
"I really loved him, and I'll never get to tell him that," she said.
Haas says she is wracked with guilt having not seen her uncle in a few years, but on Wednesday, she had to pick out clothes for his funeral as she tries to stay strong for her family.
"It was probably one of the hardest things I had to do," she said.
Investigators say last Monday, Haas was found unconscious on the ground in the 500 block of Clinton Street in Camden. EMS took him to the hospital, where he died about an hour later.
According to the Camden County Prosecutor's Office, Haas suffered blunt force trauma to his torso, and the medical examiner ruled his death a homicide.
"He was just always like a dad to me because I didn't have a dad growing up. He took on that role to his little sister to be a father figure to me," Haas said.
Haas says her uncle struggled with addiction and was currently homeless, but she remembers the man who would always crack a joke and make her laugh.
"Although he had those things he struggled with, he had a family that loved him very much. My mom is taking this very hard, that was her big brother," Haas said.
The Prosecutor's Office released new photos of Haas. He was captured on surveillance cameras around the city before he was possibly assaulted, but footage of an attack or crime scene has not been found.
Investigators and Haas's family are hoping someone may recognize his clothing and help detectives piece together a timeline to figure out what happened and why.
"I just hope whoever did this that they come forward, or someone if you know anything, come forward. It would really mean a lot to my family because we just want answers as to why, or some closure for us," she said.
Haas is now finalizing plans for her uncle's funeral, which is set for next week.
Anyone who may have seen Haas between Saturday, April 4, and Monday, April 6, is urged to call the Prosecutor's Office at 856-225-8682 or Camden County Police at 609-923-6853.