After killing four people and injuring three more in what appeared to be random shootings while driving about Memphis, the gunman was eventually apprehended, authorities said early on Thursday.
Police issued shelter-in-place warnings to homes throughout the city during the hours-long rampage, locked down a baseball stadium and university campuses, and suspended public transport service as terrified citizens feared the guy may strike again.
Ezekiel Kelly, a dangerous offender who was granted early release from jail last year, was apprehended in the Whitehaven district of Memphis at around 9 p.m., according to police spokeswoman Karen Rudolph.
At a news conference early on Thursday, Memphis Police Director Cerelyn “CJ” Davis reported that seven shootings and at least two carjackings resulted in four fatalities and three injuries.
Officers attended three other crime scenes after the initial murder on Wednesday at 12:56 a.m. before receiving a tip at 6:12 p.m. that the suspect was live streaming himself threatening to hurt people, Davis said.
Then, police issued a warning, urging people to be alert for a dangerous, armed man suspected of carrying out several shootings and possibly documenting them on Facebook.
Then there were two carjackings and three more shootings. Police claim he stole a man’s Dodge Challenger in Southaven, Mississippi, and abandoned it behind before stealing a woman’s grey Toyota SUV in Memphis.
When Kelly crashed the Challenger during a high-speed chase, two pistols were discovered inside, and two hours after the initial police alert, Kelly was taken into custody without violence, according to Davis.
Buses stopped operating and the Memphis Redbirds minor league baseball game was called off while the shooter terrorized the city. Family and friends anxiously texted and contacted one another, and TV stations interrupted regular programming to provide updates.
Throughout the incident, police got “several tips” from the general public, according to Davis.
Students at the University of Memphis received a notification stating that a shooting had been reported nearby. Nearby Rhodes College, which is 4 miles from the university, instructed both on- and off-campus students to take cover.
Rhodes College and the University of Memphis are both 12 miles from the place where Kelly was detained.
Before the arrest, Memphis police advised residents to stay inside until the issue was addressed.
The identity of individuals who were slain or hurt was not disclosed by police, nor did they address a possible motivation. It was too early in the investigation to reveal how the suspect received the gun or guns used in the shootings, said Ali Roberts, acting assistant special agent in charge for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives in Memphis.
Memphis has been rocked by a number of high-profile murders in recent weeks, including the shooting deaths of a jogger who was kidnapped during her early morning run and a jogging pastor who was shot during a daytime carjacking in her driveway.
Chase Carlisle, a member of the Memphis City Council, wrote on Twitter, “I understand it feels like so much violence and evil to experience in such a short time.” We are much more than this, I tell you.
According to court documents, Kelly, who was 17 at the time, was charged as an adult in February 2020 with attempted first-degree murder, aggravated assault, using a gun to commit a serious offense, and reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon.
According to records, he admitted to aggravated assault and was given a three-year term in April 2021. According to Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland, Kelly was freed from prison in March, 11 months after his conviction.
The mayor declared, “This is not how we should live, and it is not acceptable.” “Mr. Kelly would still be in prison today if he had completed his three-year term, and four of our fellow citizens would still be alive.”
