Kevin Rowson, a dogged reporter who specialized in crime coverage for Atlanta TV station 11Alive for 22 years, died of an unexpected, unspecified illness Saturday, according to his wife, Karen.

He was 72.

“He had no love for crime, for sure, but he was good at putting himself in the shoes of the people he was interviewing,” said Karen, who was married to Rowson for 44 years after meeting him in the small town of Fredonia in upstate New York, where they both grew up. “He cared.”

11Alive (WXIA-TV) “allowed me to do what I love, which is tell stories. I especially enjoyed crime stories,” Rowson told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2016 after he took a buyout . “They appreciated that and supported me.”

Jennifer Leslie, a reporter with him for 18 years at 11Alive, marveled over Rows

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