FBI Seeks Tips In Mississippi Mass Shooting That Left 6 Dead
What was supposed to be a festive weekend in the Mississippi Delta turned tragic after a series of mass shootings took place as several high schools and HBCUS celebrated homecoming weekend. As the communities affected grapple with the tragedy, the FBI is asking for assistance to identify the suspects in one of the shootings that left six people dead and over a dozen more injured.
Over the weekend, Bossip reported on the series of Mississippi shootings at Alcorn State University and Jackson State University on Saturday that left one dead and three injured, including a child. Both shootings took place shortly after the schools finished playing the homecoming football game. Police still have not identified a suspect in either shooting, and local police have handed the investigations over to the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation.
The deadliest night of shootings took place on Friday after several high schools played their homecoming game. On Friday night at Heidelberg High School, two people were shot and killed. WAPT reports that the suspect has been identified as Tyler Goodloe, and he’s been charged with two counts of capital murder and one count of having a deadly weapon on educational property.
The Leland High School shooting was the deadliest to take place in Mississippi over the weekend, with six people killed and another 20 injured. In the days since, more information has been revealed about the victims in the Leland High School shooting. The New York Times reports that the Washington County coroner’s office identified the victims on Saturday. They were Oreshama Johnson, 41; Calvin Plant, 19; Shelbyona Powell, 25; Kaslyn Johnson, 18; Amos Brantley, 18; and JaMichael Jones, 34.
The shootings soured what was supposed to be a jubilant weekend in Leland. Leland’s economy isn’t exactly robust, so many locals wind up moving away for work. Von Gordon, a man born near Leland, explained to the New York Times that the homecoming weekend is a way for those who moved away to remain connected to their hometown. “You grow up, and of course, you do have to go out because the economy doesn’t support jobs. So coming back, it’s not just remembrance of your school days, but you’re renewing community ties as well.”
On Sunday evening, the FBI’s Jackson Field Office released pictures of the four suspects, a woman and three men, in the Leland High School Shooting. There’s no clear motive for the shooting, though the FBI said it appears to have been “sparked by a disagreement among several individuals.”
The Mississippi shootings have already had a ripple effect in the state, with the city of Caledonia preemptively announcing a curfew for unaccompanied minors ahead of its Oct. 19 homecoming week. Leland Mayor John Lee similarly announced a curfew during a news conference addressing the shootings.
“We’re making every effort to find out who did the shooting,” Lee said during the conference. “My condolences to the families of the deceased. We’re just in prayer right now for our whole city because this is not something we represent here in the city of Leland.”
“We definitely need to crack down on gun violence,” Lee added. “These guns need to be taken off the streets.”
The Mississippi mass shootings have renewed calls for stricter gun control laws in the state. Mississippi has some of the most lax gun laws in the nation, being one of 29 states where a person doesn’t need a permit to conceal carry. A June 2025 report from researchers at Johns Hopkins University found that Mississippi had the country’s highest rate of gun deaths in 2023.
“These high-powered guns are easier to get in the Delta than a job, that’s for damn sure,” Von Gordon, a Leland local, told The New York Times.
Mississippi locals with any information about the shootings are encouraged to call local law enforcement or the Crime Stoppers tip line.
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FBI Seeks Tips In Mississippi Mass Shooting That Left 6 Dead was originally published on newsone.com
