Mississippi mass shooting: Gunman kills 6, including ex-wife, stepfather

A gunman went on a shooting rampage, killing six people, includinghis stepfather and ex-wife on Friday at multiple locations in northern Mississippi, said the sheriff, as investigators looked for clues to find out the motive behind the attack.Richard Dale Crum, aged 52, was armed with a shotgun and two handguns, when he opened fire at about 11 am, killing a man who was sitting on a pickup truck's driver's seat parked outside a convenience store in Arkabutla, said Tate County Sheriff Brad Lance.

Local law enforcement officials, as cited by CBS-affiliate WREG, stated that the man then reached another home, which was reported as his own residence, where he shot dead two more people. The deputies were investigating the initial crime scene when they received a second call informing them about another shooting that took place a few miles away.

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When the authorities reached home, they found a dead woman who was as identified as Crum's ex-wife by the sheriff and her current husband was found injured.

Crum was caught by the deputies outside his own house, where he was arrested, Lance said. The authorities also discovered two handymen killed by gunfire, one was found in an SUV and the other was lying dead on the road.

The bodies of Crum's stepfather and the sister of his stepfather were also discovered in the neighbouring home. "Everybody has crime, and from time to time we have violent crime, but certainly nothing of this magnitude. Without being able to say what triggered this, that's the scary part,” Lance said.

Crum was jailed on the charge of capital murder without a bond and Lance added that an investigation is underway to bring additional charges. The man has also been slapped with the charge of killing Chris Eugene Boyce, 59, who was sitting in the truck outside the store.

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According to the sheriff, Boyce's brother was also present in the truck, but he fled when the gunman attacked. Lance added that Boyce's brother was chased by Crum into a wooded area, where he escaped unharmed.

An “active shooter” lockdown was imposed on the elementary school in the nearby town of Coldwater when the man was being chased by law enforcement officials.

The mass shooting in Mississippi on Friday comes days after three people were killed in an attack by a gunman on a university campus in Michigan, the northern state of the US.

(With inputs from agencies)

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