What did Marquez Griffin do? Man charged over Mississippi children murder

At around 2 am on Monday, Marquez Griffin reportedly fatally shot two children at an apartment complex. The responding officer found Griffin holding a child at gunpoint when he arrived at the crime scene.

According to the Coahoma County Sheriff’s Office, 25-year-old Griffin shot a 1-year-old girl and a 9-year-old boy in the early hours of Monday.

Law enforcement officers succeeded in saving the child from the man, however, they later found two other children with fatal gunshot wounds. One of them was pronounced dead at the scene, while the other child succumbed to their injuries while receiving treatment at a local hospital in Clarksdale.

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Marquez Griffin has been charged with murder and aggravated assault

According to a press release by the Coahoma County Sheriff's Office, they received a call from 325 Coldwater River Road Apartments in Jonestown about a shooting. An off-duty sheriff's deputy, who lived in the area and heard the call on the radio, immediately responded to the scene.

There, officers found a Mississippi man, later identified as Marquez Griffin, holding a child at gunpoint. As per The Blaze, in a statement, they described the scene and said:

"Upon arrival, the off duty deputy along with other sheriff's deputies made contact with the suspect who was holding a child at gunpoint. Deputies were able to talk the subject into dropping his weapon and get the child to safety."

Following this, Marquez was immediately taken into police custody. The shooting left two children, a 9-year-old boy, and a 1-year-old girl dead. The Coahoma County Sheriff's Office has declined to release the names of the young victims.

Before moving to Jonestown, Marquez Griffin reportedly lived in Arlington, Texas. He has been charged with two counts of murder and two counts of aggravated assault and is presently being held at the Coahoma County Adult Detention Center.

The sheriff's office has said that the motive behind the shootings is still unclear as the case remains under investigation. While authorities have not released the names of the victims, according to a report by WREG-TV, the one-year-old girl was identified by her family as Averi Jones.

Jones' grandmother spoke to WREG-TV and mentioned that Marquez Griffin was allegedly friends with the victim's mother. She said:

"All I know is my grandbaby Averi Jones is gone and I just want everyone to know that Averi Baby was a sweet baby. She didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve this at all. Her mom told me she was asleep and he put a pillow over her head and shot her in her head."

She also said that there were multiple children in the apartment during the hostage situation.