Four people killed in Memphis shooting hours before suspect arrested, police say

Memphis, TN. – Police right here say a person who drove by way of the town taking pictures at individuals, killing 4, throughout an hour-long rampage that pressured frightened individuals to shelter in place on Wednesday was stopped.

Ezekiel Kelly, 19, who was charged as an grownup with tried first-degree homicide in 2020, was taken into custody round 9 p.m. within the Memphis neighborhood of Whitehaven, the spokeswoman for police, Karen Rudolph. Memphis Police Superintendent Cerelyn “CJ” Davis advised a information convention early Thursday that expenses are pending.

4 individuals have been killed and three others injured in seven shootings throughout Memphis, Davis mentioned. The rampage started at 12:56 a.m. Wednesday and continued till round 8:30 p.m.

There have been not less than eight crime scenes: the seven shootings and the carjacking of a Dodge Challenger in Southaven, Mississippi, Davis mentioned.

The suspect was arrested after crashing throughout a high-speed chase from Mississippi to Memphis. This adopted the carjacking in Southaven, south of Memphis.

CBS Memphis affiliate WREG-TV stories that the suspect obtained right into a standoff in Memphis, refusing to get out of the automobile, which police surrounded. The SWAT workforce was known as in to assist. Memphis police say the suspect was arrested with the assistance of Shelby County Sheriff’s Deputies.

The arrest took place two hours after police despatched out an alert {that a} man driving a light-weight blue Infiniti was chargeable for a number of shootings within the metropolis. Police say he later killed a lady in Memphis and took her grey Toyota SUV, which he left behind when he hijacked the Dodge Challenger in Southaven. Police mentioned he recorded his actions on Fb.

In a Fb Dwell video seen by a WREG workers member, the suspect was seen getting out of a automobile, coming into an AutoZone and taking pictures. The video was later faraway from the platform.

Because the gunman terrorized Memphis, public bus service was suspended and a downtown stadium the place a minor league baseball sport was happening was locked down. Pals and family members have been frantically calling and texting one another to test on their security. Tv stations interrupted their common protection to maintain viewers knowledgeable.

Police obtained “quite a lot of suggestions” from the general public in the course of the ordeal, Davis mentioned.

The College of Memphis despatched a message to college students saying a taking pictures had been reported close to campus.

Rhodes School, which is about 4 miles from the college, has suggested college students on and off campus to shelter in place.

The world the place the suspect was arrested was about 11 miles from the College of Memphis and about 12 miles from Rhodes School.

“If you do not have to go outdoors, keep inside till that is resolved,” Memphis police tweeted forward of the arrest.

Police haven’t mentioned a motive or launched the identities of these killed or injured.

It was too early within the investigation to debate how the suspect used the weapon or firearms within the taking pictures, mentioned Ali Roberts, appearing assistant particular agent in command of the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, tobacco, firearms and explosives in Memphis.

Memphis has been rocked by a number of high-profile killings in latest weeks, together with the taking pictures of a pastor throughout a daylight carjacking in his driveway, the taking pictures of an activist throughout a dispute over cash and the homicide of a lady who was kidnapped whereas working earlier than daybreak.

“I perceive it looks like a lot violence and damage in such a short while,” Memphis Metropolis Councilman Chase Carlisle mentioned on Twitter. “We’re a lot greater than that.”

In February 2020, the suspect, then 17, was charged as an grownup with tried first diploma homicide, aggravated assault, use of a firearm within the fee of a harmful crime and of reckless endangerment with a lethal weapon, in keeping with court docket data. The circumstances of the case weren’t instantly recognized.

Data present he pleaded responsible to aggravated assault and was sentenced in April 2021 to a few years. The suspect was launched from jail in March, 11 months after being convicted, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland mentioned.