2 Children Killed in Mississippi Hostage Situation, Suspect Charged

Marquez Griffin, 25, is charged with killing two children in Jonestown, Miss., on Jan. 9, 2023. (Courtesy of Coahoma County Sheriff’s Office)

Two children in Mississippi were shot and killed and a third child was held at gunpoint in what officials said was a hostage situation at an apartment complex.

The Coahoma County Sheriff’s Office in Clarksdale, Mississippi, said the department received calls on Jan. 9 with reports of a child shot at an apartment complex. An off-duty deputy in the area responded immediately to the call, which came in at about 2 a.m., according to authorities.

“Upon arrival, the off duty deputy along with other sheriff’s deputies made contact with the suspect, who was holding a child at gunpoint,” the agency said in a news release posted on Facebook. “Deputies were able to talk the suspect into dropping his weapon and get the child to safety. The suspect was immediately taken into custody.”

Officers said a 9-year-old boy and a 1-year-old girl had suffered gunshot wounds prior to their arrival. One of the children was pronounced dead at the scene while the other was transported for medical care but did not survive.

The third child was not harmed.

The sheriff’s office said the suspect, 25-year-old Marquez Griffin, was charged with two counts of murder and two counts of aggravated assault. Griffin had recently moved to Mississippi from Arlington, Texas.

The sheriff’s department said the motive was unclear and an investigation is ongoing.

Baby Girl’s Grandmother Speaks to Media

While the sheriff’s office did not release the names of the victims, family members of the 1-year-old, a baby girl, spoke to local media outlets in Memphis, Tennessee, about 65 miles north of the Mississippi community where the incident occurred.

The child’s grandmother, Melrose Halie, told FOX13 the child’s name was Averi Jones.

“That was my grandbaby,” she told the station. “She was only a year and a half, and now she’s gone. It’s nothing in this world that can take this pain away. Nothing.”

Haile said she doesn’t know the accused gunman and that she and other community members are trying to understand what led to the gunfire.

“I don’t understand,” Haile said. “Why would you do this? Why? That innocent baby. She’s innocent. She was just a baby. Why would he do this? Why would he take these children’s lives like that?”

She said the family called the girl “Averi Baby” and that she was a happy baby.

“Just to think that Christmas was the last time of seeing my grandbaby. I just want to hold her and tell her I love her one more time.”

She told another Memphis outlet, a CBS affiliate, that the child’s mother said there were several children at the apartment when the shooting happened, and that the man was a friend of the baby’s mother.

“Her mom told me she was asleep and he put a pillow over her head and shot her in her head,” Haile said. “She told me they were friends and how could a friend do this to you?”

Police have not confirmed the details of the incident or the child’s name.

No information on the boy had been released as of publication, and no additional information was available.