The murder of a Virginian-Pilot newspaper carrier nearly four months ago remains unsolved.

John Price Jr., 50, was gunned down in the 100 block of Brewer Avenue about 4 a.m. on July 8 as he delivered the newspaper. Police, responding to calls reporting shots fired, found Price already deceased in the middle of the roadway. Police found a van that belonged to Price stopped, with the engine running and the driver’s door open, a short distance away.

Among this year’s five homicides for the city, Price’s murder is the only one left unsolved.

“We’re still actively investigating,” Suffolk Police Chief Thomas Bennett said. “There’s still some stuff we’re following up on. It’s still an active case. We haven’t filed it away or anything.”

Price’s murder was Suffolk’s third deadly shooting of 2009. There have been five murders in the city this year, Bennett said, which is on track with last year’s total at this time.

The first shooting of the year occurred on March 28. Jeannette Brabrand shot and killed her former boyfriend, Paul Bamberg, in the N. Broad Street home they had formerly shared, before turning the gun on herself.

The next shooting, Bennett said, does not count toward the homicide numbers because it was ruled self-defense. On June 21, a Whaleyville store owner, James H. Durden Jr., shot through his store’s window and killed a burglar, Ernest Roop, inside. The commonwealth’s attorney reviewed the case and ruled Durden had shot in self-defense.

After the Price murder, the city’s next homicide of the year occurred in a Nansemond Pointe Drive residence. On Sept. 4, Timothy Wayne Sanders, 47, and soldier Matthew Stephenson Jr., 41, both were visitors in the home when an argument ensued, according to police. Sanders allegedly left the home, went to his vehicle, returned and shot Stephenson. Sanders has yet to go to trial to face the charges.

On Oct. 17, perhaps the most bizarre homicide this year occurred in the Eclipse area. Police say a road rage incident along Eclipse Drive resulted in an altercation that left one man dead and another hospitalized. Chad Andrew Kinney, 36, of Carrollton, is awaiting trial on second-degree murder for the death of Glenn Joe Bauwens, 42, of Suffolk. Dennis W. Bailey, 29, of Suffolk, also was shot, but survived.

The most recent homicide in Suffolk occurred when Cathy Moseley’s body was discovered in a vehicle in Isle of Wight County. An autopsy confirmed she had died of stab wounds. On Oct. 27, police charged her husband, Darren Moseley, 32, with her murder. The suspect told police the two had been having marital problems. Moseley still awaits trial on the charges.

The investigation into the murder of Miles Cross, 21, whose body was dumped on Collins Road in Suffolk and discovered Oct. 1, also does not count toward the city’s homicide totals this year, Bennett said. Investigation has led both Suffolk and Hampton police to believe that the murder occurred in Hampton, Bennett added. The investigation of that case has been turned over to the city of Hampton. Detectives there are searching for Barry Eugene Moore Jr., 21, of the 5000 block of 81st Street.

Anyone with any information on Price’s murder is asked to call Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP. Callers to Crime Line never have to give their name or appear in court, and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.