Citadel cadet, childhood friend gunned down in vacant Florida lot as police launch manhunt

A Citadel cadet and South Carolina Army National Guard member is one of two young men found shot to death in a vacant Florida lot, with police still hunting for a suspect.

The DeLand Police Department in Florida said Dustin Rose, 19, and Samson Campbell, 18, were found dead on Wednesday around 10:40 p.m. Police haven't identified any potential motive and have yet to publicly identify a suspect. Rose and Campbell have been friends since they were children.

Rose, who attended The Citadel Military College of South Carolina, was home on break while pursuing his childhood dream of serving in the military. According to FOX 35, Rose recently became a member of the South Carolina Army National Guard.

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Dustin Rose, 19, a Citadel cadet, was pursuing his childhood dream of serving in the military when he was killed. (GoFundMe)

Police released a screenshot of surveillance video showing the two walking together on Tuesday evening. It's not yet known if the two were targeted.

One of the victims' mothers may have been among the family members who found the two dead after they went unreachable by phone, authorities previously said.

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Campbell, who's originally from DeLand, was living with his aunt Karen Chobin in the Chicago area. Chobin said Campbell was in town to mourn the death of his family's 8-year-old dog, who recently died, and was staying with Rose's grandparents.

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Childhood friends Dustin Rose, left, and Samson Campbell, right, were fatally shot in a vacant Florida lot as police search for a suspect. (DeLand Police Department)

Rose was in DeLand to help Campbell spread his dog's ashes, Chobin said.

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"It was a traumatic loss. It wasn't a passing of old age. It was awful. And then for this to be what he's welcomed with when he goes down there to mourn his loss is devastating," Chobin said.

Rose's aunt, Jaimie Scarola, told FOX 35 his life was taken too soon.

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"He was willing to go to the front line and fight for our freedom, including the freedom of the one who took him from us," Scarola said. "You took him away from not only his family, but you robbed an entire country of a future soldier who didn't get to answer that call."

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Surveillance video shows Dustin Rose and Samson Campbell walking together on Tuesday evening, the day before they were found dead. (DeLand Police Department)

While a suspect hasn't yet been identified, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant on Saturday night at a home in DeLand with help from the Volusia Sheriff’s Office SWAT team and the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force, according to FOX 35.

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Anyone with information is asked to contact the DeLand Police Department through Crime Watch or to reach the Criminal Investigations Division at 386-626-7400.