A 25-year-old man who allegedly shot a baby and a nine-year-old boy dead in a hostage horror has been seized by police.
Suspect Marquez Griffin was persuaded to surrender as he held a third child at gunpoint in the siege drama in Jonestown, Mississippi state, USA.
Inside the apartment, police found a 12-month-old girl and a boy aged nine who had both been shot.
One victim was declared dead at the scene and the other was taken to hospital but did not survive.
Only the baby has been identified as Averi Jones, and police did not state if the children were related to the gunman,
Newsflash obtained a statement from the Coahoma County Sheriff’s Office on Monday, 9th January, saying: “At approximately 2am, the Coahoma County Sheriff’s Office received a call from 325 Coldwater River Road Apartments in Jonestown of a child shot.
“An off-duty sheriff’s deputy that lives in Jonestown, heard the call go out over the radio and immediately responded to the scene.
“Upon arrival, the off-duty deputy along with other sheriff’s deputies made contact with the suspect who was holding a child at gunpoint.
“Deputies were able to talk the subject into dropping his weapon and get the child to safety. The suspect was immediately taken into custody.”
It went on: “After the suspect was in custody deputies discovered that two children, a nine-year-old male and a one-year-old female had suffered gunshot wounds prior to their arrival.
“One of the victims was pronounced dead on the scene and the other was transported to the ER in Clarksdale and did not survive. The names of the two deceased children are not being released at this time.
“This is an ongoing investigation and the motive is not yet clear.
“Twenty-five-year-old, Marquez Griffin, who recently moved back to this area from Arlington, Texas was arrested and is in custody at the Coahoma County Adult Detention Center, where he has been charged with 2 counts of murder and 2 counts of aggravated assault.”
Averi’s grandmother, Melrose Haile, told local media: “All I know is my grandbaby Averi Jones is gone and I just want everyone to know that Averi was a sweet baby. She didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve this at all.”
She added: “Her mom told me she was asleep and he put a pillow over her head and shot her in her head.”
Haile also reportedly said that the suspect was friends with Averi’s mother, who has not been named, and added that there were several other children in the apartment at the time of the shooting.
Hailed added: “She told me they were friends and how could a friend do this to you?”
The investigation is ongoing.
