A shooting last week that killed a woman and injured a man was over a fast-food order, Blytheville Police Chief Ross Thompson said.
Officers responded late Tuesday to a residence in the 1900 block of West Ash Street, where they found Priscilla Aldridge and Kelvin Thomas, both of Blytheville, suffering from gunshot wounds, according to a news release from the Police Department. Both had been shot at the residence, the release said.
Aldridge and Thomas, both 37, were transported to a hospital where Aldridge died, Thompson said.
A warrant for first-degree murder has been issued for Andra Crockett, 33, of Blytheville. Crockett is the brother of Thomas, and police believe the shooting was a result of an argument about a fast-food order, Thompson said in the release.
Police described Crockett as black, about 5 feet 8 inches tall, and weighing 150 to 160 pounds. He has a scar on his face and another on his abdomen, with tattoos on his chest and arms. He is considered armed and dangerous.
"Anyone found harboring or assisting Crockett may be subject to criminal charges," Thompson said.
Aldridge's death is the seventh homicide this year in the town of about 14,000, and the second in March.
Blytheville Mayor James Sanders said Monday, after the town's sixth homicide, that he doesn't know what has led to the increase of violence.
"I am at a loss for words," Sanders said. "These are a very unusual set of events that are happening."
Four underage suspects have been arrested in the recent spate of fatal shootings. Two were arrested Feb. 24 over a killing at Walker Park. A 17-year-old was arrested in the Feb. 11 shooting of 35-year-old Travis Pearson, and a 14-year-old was arrested, along with another man, in the Feb. 6 death of Jerry Marshall, 63.
A young person also was killed March 3 in a shooting at Summit and Evergreen streets.
"I think it speaks to a lack of an ability to find resolutions," Sanders said. "It's hard to measure what is happening, especially when it involves our youth. The disturbing thing about this is the shootings aren't between random people. It seems like it's always perpetrated by someone who knows the victim."
Sanders said he has talked with community members and officials recently to try to get a feel of what is causing the tension inside his town. The mayor said he has floated the idea of having a community forum in hopes of finding a solution, but nothing has been scheduled.
"We first need to get an insight into what is going on," Sanders said. "I have been talking with the county judge, and I am looking to our Christian community and to people who are working with children to find a common thread that could help us curb this unrest."
State Desk on 03/10/2019