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| Photo Credit: AP. |
A 19-year-old suspect who shot dead four people in a shooting spree in Memphis, Tennessee, livestreamed at least one of the shootings on Facebook.
The hour
long shootings prompted officials to declare a lockdown demanding residents
remain indoors during the search, as officers closed down Tennessee’s second
largest city. Three other persons were injured during the deadly shooting but
the suspect was arrested late Wednesday night.
Speaking
during a press conference Thursday morning, Mayor Jim Strickland who described
the shooting as a “senseless murder rampage,” said he was “angry for our
citizens who had to shelter in place until this suspect was caught,” The New
York Times reports.
“This is no
way for us to live, and it is not acceptable. The people of our city were
confronted with the type of violence no one should have to face,” he added.
So who is Ezekiel Kelly?
The Memphis
Police Department identified the suspect as Ezekiel Dejuan Kelly, who tore
through the streets in a rampage covering at least eight crime scenes and later
crossed into neighboring Mississippi, according to The New York Times.
The suspect
is facing several felony charges and was being transported to the jail where he
awaits formal charges and arraignment.
The New York
Times reported that the manhunt began around 6 p.m. Wednesday after authorities
were alerted about a shooting on Facebook Live.
Kelly was
captured by Memphis police at about 9:20 p.m. on Wednesday after a high-speed
chase, according to Washington Examiner.
The suspect
shot his first victim just before 1 a.m. on Wednesday, Washington Examiner
reports. Officers identified a deceased male victim in a driveway and police
say Kelly was a suspect.
Kelly made
series of attacks during a violent rampage between the hours of 4 p.m. and 9
p.m. Wednesday, allegedly committing several carjackings and shooting several
victims, according to Washington Examiner.
When did Kelly, Memphis mass shooting suspect began his shooting spree?
At 4:38
p.m., the suspect fired multiple gunshots at a vehicle he pulled up next to,
and killed the driver, Memphis police said, according to the Washington
Examiner.
At 4:40 p.m.
the suspect shot a female victim in the leg but she survived the attack and was
taken to hospital for treatment.
Not yet satisfied,
the suspect furthered his crimes at 5:59 p.m. on Facebook Live where he
recorded himself walking into a business and shooting a male inside the store,
leaving the victim critically injured, the Washington Examiner quoted Memphis
police as saying.
At 6:12 p.m.
Memphis police say they were notified of the Facebook Live and launched a
manhunt.
At 7 p.m.,
Kelly allegedly shot another woman and carjacked which he followed with another
shooting of a male victim by 7:24 pm but the victim was in noncritical
condition, police said, according to the Washington Examiner.
At 8:55 p.m.
Kelly allegedly shot a female victim and later carjacked a victim at gunpoint.
Police
spotted the Kelly’s final carjacking vehicle at 8:58 p.m., and he was
apprehended at about 9:20 p.m. by Memphis and Shelby County police after a hot
chase.
The Memphis
Area Transit Authority suspended its trolley and bus service while the
University of Memphis went on lockdown as a result of the shooting, according
to The New York Times.
Does Kelly have previous criminal record?
In 2020, the
suspect was charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder,
possession of a firearm and reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon, New
York Times cited court records.
He was 17 at
the time and was charged in a juvenile court. Major Strickland said the ex-convict
was sentenced to three years after pleading guilty to a lesser charge of
aggravated assault but he only served 11 months in prison and was released in
March.
"If Mr.
Kelly served his full three-year sentence, he would still be in prison today
and four of our fellow citizens would still be alive," the mayor said.