NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) — Newport News police are investigating a homicide in the area of 19th Street and Ivy Avenue. 

Police arrived in the 600 block of 19th Street near Ivy and found a man inside a vehicle with several gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene. 

10 On Your Side has learned the victim is 31-year-old Javon Marquis Stephenson.

The emergency call came in around 9:40 p.m. and was originally reported as a vehicle fire. Police say while they were on the way to the scene, they learned the incident involved a gunshot victim. 

It turned out the incident did not involve a fire at all — police say whoever called 911 presumed a fire because they saw smoke near the car. The smoke was the result of what police describe as a tire burnout, laying rubber on the road, although police say there was no evidence of street racing.

This is the city’s 17th homicide of the year, according to 10 On Your Side’s reports. 

Police will not say whether anyone else was in the car or whether the windows were broken. Police say neighbors heard gunshots but did not see what happened.

No suspect information is available, but police ask anyone with information to call the Crime Line at 1 (888) LOCK-U-UP. 

Stay on WAVY.com as we continue to update you on this developing story.