Police were investigating the death of a 23-year-old Suffolk man on Wednesday.

Police were called to the 500 block of Lucerne Avenue at 12:25 p.m. regarding a shooting in the area, according to a city press release.

Dalvin Henderson, 23, was identified as the victim.

A woman who identified herself as the mother of his 5-year-old son but declined to give her name said he was a “loving, caring, gentle” person and was a good father to their son.

“It’s a hard pill to swallow,” she said on Wednesday while waiting at the scene for details.

She was contemplating how to break the news to her son.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do when he gets out of school,” she said.

Multiple Suffolk police officers and the SWAT team were on scene most of the afternoon. Part of Factory Street was blocked near the scene for several hours but was later reopened.

City spokesman Tim Kelley said Wednesday evening that police were not yet confirming the means of death, even though the original call referenced a shooting.

Kelley said it had not been indicated to him that there was a barricade situation, even though the SWAT team responded. He also said further information would not be forthcoming until Thursday.

Schools were also affected. Booker T. Washington Elementary School was locked down for part of the afternoon on the advice of police, division spokeswoman Bethanne Bradshaw stated in an email.

Bradshaw also said students from that neighborhood were held at school until a bus was able to get into the neighborhood to take them home. Some students at Booker T. Washington Elementary, King’s Fork Middle and Lakeland High schools were affected.