Mass shooting at Memphis business park leaves 1 dead, 5 injured, per MPD
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MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – A mass shooting at a local business park Wednesday left one man dead and five others injured, according to the Memphis Police Department.
Family members have identified the deceased as 22-year-old Mathew Williams.
Williams’ family tells Action News 5 that he was a participant in the community violence intervention program “Memphis Allies,” and was attending a meeting when he was killed.
MPD reports that officers received the shooting call around 3:29 p.m. at the 4000 block of South Mendenhall Road.
Memphis Allies confirmed in a statement that this was one of their meeting locations.
MPD says Williams was pronounced dead at the scene.
Five others were rushed to the hospital—one faces life-threatening injuries, while the remaining four are expected to recover.
MPD reports that this was an “isolated incident,” though there’s no word on a suspect at this time.
MPD says this is an ongoing investigation.
K. Durell Cowan, founder of HEAL 901, was there with 901 BLOC Squad supporting Memphis Allies. They are all violence intervention programs. Cowan says any of their programs could be the target of violence.
“We understand that we are front-line workers. Boots on the ground, socks on the floor, this is what we do. So we understand there is a level of danger that comes with this job when we all took it,” he said. “We just hate to see that it ended in a tragic matter for anybody on any stand in this matter.”
Tuesday, Mayor Paul Young touted funding in the city’s fiscal 2025 budget, helping the city see a 29% decrease in murders in 2024.
While the numbers are going down, violence is still happening, even at the places created to stop it.
Cowan says more resources are needed.
“We are seeing some of the numbers go down, but I have to be honest with everyone. We have an epidemic and a pandemic in Memphis, and we can’t keep throwing pebbles at it, saying we are going to stop the problem. It’s going to take resources,” he said. “And we are going to need more support for resources to be able to get the manpower that we need for this catastrophic problem that we have in the city.”
“At this time, investigators are combing over evidence and following up on investigative leads, trying to find the suspects responsible for this shooting,” said MPD Public Information Officer Lieutenant Louis Brownlee.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 901-528-CASH.
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