Russ Zimmer

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Cynthia Jackson wasn't sure her brother was ready for the responsibility of fatherhood until she saw him get the news that he was going to be a dad.

"He was so proud," Jackson told the Asbury Park Press Wednesday. "The glow and twinkle in his eye. He was so proud, and I was so happy to see him in daddy mode. This was something that he felt he had to get right."

But Corey Basden, 33, was denied the chance to be there for his now 2-year-old daughter. Monday night, he was shot and killed in a parking lot behind the Veterans of Foreign Wars building on Corlies Avenue.

Now, Jackson is pleading with witnesses to come forward and prevent the assailant from getting away with it.

"I don’t know who would want to do this and I don’t know why," said Jackson, her voice cracking. "We all know they are a coward and they won’t turn themselves in."

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Officials say about 100 people were at the VFW for a post-funeral gathering. Basden was there to commiserate with others over the early passing of a childhood friend, Jackson said.

Jackson wasn't there and doesn't know what happened next, but police say gunshots rang out at about 8 p.m. When officers arrived Basden was "obviously deceased," according to the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office.

No arrests have been made and the prosecutor's office released a statement the next day asking for witnesses to come forward.

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Jackson said she is praying people who were there that night find the courage to share what they saw or heard.

“You can’t tell me that somebody in a crowded parking lot walked up to someone and shot them in the face and nobody saw anything," she said.

Not surprisingly, Jackson is angry.

"(My brother) was a sweet soul. He loved — he loved — his family," she said, fighting back tears. "We was very close, like best friends. He would give you the shirt off his back. He didn’t deserve this."

She acknowledged Basden's past crimes — he was convicted of aggravated assault in 2006 and years earlier of dealing drugs – but argued that "he’s come a long way and was trying to change his self." For the last decade, Basden had mostly stayed out of problem.

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Jackson, 37, said they had other half-siblings, but that she and Basden were the only ones who were close.

"I grew up taking care of him. I took care of him all the time," she said, "And whenever I needed him, he’d be there for me."

As much pain as she's feeling, Jackson said, she knows that her brother wouldn't have wanted anyone who loved him to respond with violence in his name.

"Don’t retaliate," she said. "The violence will never stop."

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Do you have information?

A joint investigation has been launched and anyone with information can contact Detective John Leibfried of the prosecutor’s office at 800-533-7443 or Detective Eric Chunn of the township police at 732-988-8000.

Anonymous tips can be called in through the Monmouth County Crime Stoppers confidential telephone tip-line by calling 1-800-671-4400, or by texting "MONMOUTH" and then the tip to 274637, or online through the website: www.monmouthcountycrimestoppers.com.

Crime Stoppers will pay up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest of criminals and fugitives.