Family searches for answers in young mother's murder

PHILADELPHIA (WTXF) It's been six months since the murder of a young mother and a family is still seeks answers.

With a heavy heart that no amount of time can seem to lift, Steve Dzikowski still lights candles in a makeshift shrine inside his home. The home he shared with his daughter, her boyfriend and their baby.

Read More: Port Richmond Mother, 22, Found Murdered In Her Bedroom

"I was thrown off a cliff. My heart was ripped out. Nothing I could do. I wasn't there to protect her," said the victim's father, Steve Dzikowski.

In July, 22-year-old Stephanie Dzikowski was shot execution style in the bedroom of her Aramingo Avenue home. Her 2-year-old daughter was in the house when someone ran inside and killed the Port Richmond dental hygienist.

"We miss her every day," her best friend Stacey Przcposki told FOX 29.

Police say the shooting happened when Stephanie's longtime boyfriend and the father their child left the home to buy milk at the corner store. That's when the intruder entered, shooting Stephanie, and taking off down the street. Surveillance video shows a man with a hooded sweatshirt running from the scene.

Homicide detectives have been working the case and sources tell us they do have credible leads.

"I'm not going get a sigh of relief until this person is caught," Steve explained.

The murder and the ongoing investigation has ripped apart this family and the tight knit community here and they say they can't rest until Stephanie's killer is caught. If anyone has information, please contact Philadelphia Homicide Detectives.