On the night of Friday, June 21, 2024, 24-year-old Jaterius Easley was struck by gunfire in the 500 block of 53rd Avenue in Meridian, Mississippi. Officers found Easley with gunshot wounds and he was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Three other people were also injured in the same shooting and were driven to the hospital in private vehicles.

The Meridian Police Department opened an investigation, with detectives joined by the MPD Gang Unit and Special Operations Unit. By early October investigators had identified a suspect and announced they were searching for Richard Jones, who is wanted for Easley’s murder and faces three counts of aggravated assault for the injured victims. The search for Jones is active and authorities are asking anyone with information to get in touch.

If readers have information about the shooting or Jones’s whereabouts, can you contact the Meridian Police Department?