A shooting rampage across three locations left six people dead in Clay County, Miss., on Friday night, in a case officials are calling one of the most heinous in recent memory. The suspected gunman is in custody and has been charged with murder.
The victims range in age from a 7-year-old girl to a 67-year-old man, Clay County Sheriff Eddie Scott told reporters on Saturday. No other injuries were reported, he said.
"At this point, we do not know a motive for these acts," Scott said.
The victims include the alleged shooter's father, uncle and brother. The unnamed 7-year-old was also related to the alleged perpetrator.
"This has really, really shaken our community, and for me, almost 30 years in, this is one of the toughest ones we've had to work," Scott said.
According to the sheriff's office, Daricka Moore, 24, is accused of opening fire at the first location just before 7 p.m., fatally shooting his father, uncle and brother in the head. Evidence and witnesses lead investigators to believe Moore was the only shooter, Scott said.
Moore then stole his brother's truck, authorities said, and drove to a second location where he attempted sexual battery on one victim. In front of witnesses, Moore is accused of then shooting and killing the 7-year-old girl.
Scott said there were two other children in the home at that point, in addition to the children's mother. Hee said that, based on witness accounts, a second, younger child was threatened with a gun at this location as well.
"According to the statements, after the 7-year-old was violently murdered, a weapon was stuck to the head of a small child in the house," the sheriff said, adding that it was unclear if the gun misfired or if Moore did not pull the trigger on the second child.
"That's how violent he was, to shoot one and stick a gun to another one."
Moore then fled to a third location where two additional men were found dead of gunshot wounds. The sheriff's office said it was not yet sure of what relationship Moore had to the last set of victims, who are brothers, but that one of the two men was a pastor at a local church.
Moore was charged with first-degree murder, but that charge is expected to be upgraded to capital murder with additional charges forthcoming, Sheriff Scott said.
District Attorney Scott Colom said, based on the extreme nature of the crimes, his office would be pursuing the death penalty against Moore, if eligible.
"Typically, I would consult with the victims and wait down the line, but there's some cases that they've got to get the worst punishment," Colom said. "Six people, one night, several different scenes. You've heard the allegations, they're about as bad as it gets."
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