STARKVILLE — Three suspects have been arrested for Wednesday night’s fatal shooting of a 9-year-old boy.
Starkville Police Department arrested Barron “B-Man” Hubbard, 29, Tabyron “Tayy Tayy” Fisher, 21, and Dellveon “Dez” Lindsey, 19, after lab results proved they were involved in the killing of Lasang Kemp. Each has been charged with murder and six counts of aggravated assault.
SPD received calls around 8 p.m. Wednesday about a vehicle being targeted at the corner of Carver and Hiwassee drives where gunfire eventually erupted.
The vehicle managed to evade the suspects through the Brookville Garden Apartments area where additional gunfire took place, Police Chief Mark Ballard said at a press conference Thursday.
“Both the victim and the suspect were in moving vehicles as there was shooting,” Ballard said.
A vehicle containing relatives to the initial victim, including Kemp, was leaving out of Santa Anita Drive around 8:30 p.m. More gunfire erupted, with Kemp fatally wounded in the process. He was pronounced dead at OCH Regional Medical Center.
“We believe the same vehicle responsible for the first shooting rolled up and opened gunfire on the second vehicle, shooting and killing the young man,” Ballard said. “The family traveled quickly to OCH, and that’s where, as part of their policy, they notified the police department as we were receiving different calls in interest with the gunfire.”
Based on evidence investigators collected, Ballard said SPD believes the three men are directly related to a double homicide that occurred in March 2021 outside an apartment complex near Henderson and Pilcher streets.
“We do believe that the individuals involved in (Wednesday’s) tragic events, were also involved in, if you recall almost a year ago, in the double homicide,” Ballard said.
Ballard said he plans for increased police presence in areas that have been a hot spot for crime, such as Brookville Garden Apartments. While Brookville Garden has been a site for criminal activity for some time now, police officers cannot manage properties, just respond and report to crime, he said.
“It’s something we’re very united on as a community — that we’ve got to do more and do better…,” Ballard said. “We’ve placed camera systems around the Northside community. Statistically, it’s helped a lot based on our reports from the systems.”
Kemp was a student at Henderson Ward Stewart Elementary School in Starkville.
Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District Superintendent Eddie Peasant said counselors will be available Monday at HWS for any students who would like to talk about the loss of their friend and classmate.
“It is absolutely devastating to lose a member of our school family, especially a student, and we are all affected by it,” Peasant said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with (Kemp’s) family and friends who loved him dearly.”
Ballard said several law enforcement agencies in the area helped contribute to solving this case, including Oktibbeha County 911, Mississippi State University Police Department, Oktibbeha County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Marshals Task Force, FBI of North Mississippi and Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office.
Situations like these, he said, tend to be emotionally difficult for officers due to the murder involving a child, and prayers go out to the victim’s family.
“A lot of our officers are parents, aunts and uncles, so when the tragic death of a child occurs, it hits us hard,” Ballard said.
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