MINNEAPOLIS — On Saturday night at 11:04 p.m., Camilla Lieng, one of Ra'Lasia Wright's best friends, received an iPhone SOS emergency text indicating that "Ra'Lasia called emergency services after the iPhone detected a crash." The message included a map with a location adjacent to Powderhorn Park in South Minneapolis.
Lieng wasn't able to reach Ra'Lasia and assumed there was no actual emergency.
"I thought she was going to the club or something or something happened where she accidentally hit her SOS button because that does happen. I didn't get in contact with her and it was late at night, so I went to bed," Lieng said.
The next morning, other friends and family hadn't heard from Wright either.
So they followed Wright's shared location on their phones — the same as the SOS message — and found her shot and killed. Wright's body was lying on a driveway between two houses. Both homeowners told KARE 11 News they didn't see or hear anything.
"There are a lot of speculations... like, who were you with that night?" Lieng said.
Several unanswered questions remain. Lieng said Wright had no connection to that neighborhood. There was no evidence of a car crash and no indication of how Wright got there.
Wright was transgender and Camilla said she stood up for others in the community. She describes her friend as outgoing and protective — but also polarizing.
"She loved her friends she loved her family. She just wanted to make sure everyone was good. As long as you didn't mess with her, there were no issues," Lieng said. "Ra'Lasia did have some ongoing social media issues but that's just her. "
Hoping that the killer is swiftly caught, LIeng said she will miss her friend.
"She took me under her wing and brought me around her people and they showed me love and loved me and now I don't have anyone else to go anywhere with," Lieng said.