On the evening of June 12, 2019, 7-year-old Quintavious Allen Jr was inside his home on Grant Road in Brookhaven, Mississippi, playing video games when multiple shots were fired from a passing vehicle. A bullet from an assault-style weapon pierced the house and struck Quintavious. He was taken by private vehicle to King’s Daughters Medical Center, then airlifted to the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, where he died later that night.

The killing of the child known to family as Yang Yang devastated the Brookhaven community and prompted an investigation led by Brookhaven Police Chief Kenneth Collins. Investigators initially encountered a wall of silence and canvassed the neighborhood door-to-door. Tips from the public eventually led to an arrest: John Weathersby was taken into custody by the Copiah County Sheriff’s Office in connection with the drive-by shooting.

Quintavious’s funeral was held at Brookhaven Elementary School, and his family publicly urged an end to gun violence. If anyone has information about the shooting or knew Quintavious, please come forward to assist the investigation.