Suspect in custody after 6 killed in spree of shootings in Mississippi

Authorities say one person was in custody Saturday after six people were killed in a series of related shootings in eastern Mississippi.

Clay County Sheriff Eddie Scott said on Facebook that “several innocent lives” had been lost “due to the violence” in the town of West Point, near the Alabama border. Authorities identified the suspect as 24-year-old Daricka M. Moore.

The suspect was in custody and there was no threat to the community, the sheriff wrote on Facebook.

At a news conference Saturday afternoon, Scott said the victims — family members connected to the suspect — were shot in three different locations Friday evening. One of the victims was a child.

“I don’t know what kind of motive you could have to kill a 7-year-old,” the sheriff said.

Contacted by CBS News Saturday morning, the sheriff’s office provided no further details.

Moore faces a first-degree murder charge that could be upgraded to capital murder, Scott said. He could also face additional murder charges.

The shootings took place in the rural community of Cedarbluff, located west of the county seat of West Point.