More details have been released about the Memphis shooting spree that left four people dead and three more wounded while being partially live-streamed on Facebook on Wednesday.
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The suspect, 19-year-old Ezekiel Kelly, was arrested late Wednesday night. He’s expected to face multiple murder charges.
Kelly’s day of terror began just before 1 a.m. Wednesday, when he fatally shot Dewayne Tunstall, 24, outside a home in east Memphis, police said. Witnesses said Kelly approached a group of people, pulled Tunstall to the side and shot him in the head.
At that point, Tunstall’s killing was considered an isolated incident. That changed 15 hours later.
Kelly fatally shot a man in South Memphis around 4:40 p.m., police said. Minutes later, he allegedly shot and wounded a woman in the same area.
Around 6 p.m., in the northeast suburb of Nutbush, Kelly shared a video of himself shooting and wounding a man inside a store, according to police. Shortly afterward, he jumped on Facebook Live and threatened the entire region.
With officers on the lookout for Kelly’s vehicle, he carjacked a woman in Midtown Memphis and killed her around 7:15 p.m., cops said. He then drove a few blocks before allegedly shooting and wounding a man.
Kelly then traveled southwest in this new vehicle to Memphis’ Westwood neighborhood and fatally shot another woman, police said. After that, he drove across the state border into Southaven, Miss., and carjacked another person. That person was, amazingly, left unharmed.
Cops quickly identified Kelly’s new vehicle and caught up with him. He led them on a high-speed chase back into southern Memphis, where he crashed and was arrested.
Investigators have not publicly speculated on any possible motive for the killing spree.
Two years ago, at age 17, Kelly was arrested and charged with attempted murder in a drive-by shooting that wounded two young men. The victims didn’t cooperate with authorities, so Kelly was able to plead guilty to aggravated assault and receive a three-year sentence. He was released after 11 months.
“This is no way for us to live, and it is not acceptable,” an outraged Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said Thursday. “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 rampage sent shockwaves through Memphis and surrounding areas. The Memphis Redbirds’ minor league baseball game was called off; two universities, including the University of Memphis, went into lockdown; and residents throughout the region hid at home following warnings from police.
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