Boopac Shakur, known for hunting child sex predators, shot dead by suspected pedophile

The 40-year-old amassed a sizable following on social media thanks to his "To Catch a Predator" style tactics of posing as an underage girl online and exposing the grown men who unsuspectingly met up with him.

According to the Detroit Free Press, Lee was on one of his missions at the Universal Coney Island restaurant near the corner of North Perry and Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard when the shooting occured. He confronted two suspected predators, age 17 and 18, accusing one of being a pedophile before punching him.

One suspect pulled out a knife while the other drew a gun and fired several times. As Lee lay dying on the floor, the two teens made a run for it. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, but succumbed to his injuries.

The pair, whose identities have not yet been released, were eventually tracked down by the Oakland County Sheriff's office and taken into custody.

On Saturday, friends and families held a vigil for Lee, remembering him and his work, which led to numerous arrests and criminal charges.

"He really changed a lot of lives," one supporter said. "He really cared about the kids of the community. He wanted to keep everyone's kids safe, and he was just a really caring person."

Following his death, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard warned others that vigilante work was dangerous.

"While we certainly understand his desire to hold child predators accountable, many times well-intentioned individuals who engage in this don't know the standard of evidence required for convictions and often underestimate the potential for violence confronting a suspected predator," he said.

"They feel trapped and often lash out violently. When we have arrested predators in such circumstances, they have rammed police cars and exhibited other violent behavior in attempts to escape."