Two more suspects are behind bars and charged with aggravated assault on a police officer in connection with an alleged shooting incident that took place early on the morning of Sept. 14.
Xavier Marquis Cooper 18, 305 Youngblood Drive and Robert Lanez Wilburn 25, 1000 First Street, Inverness were taken into custody on Thursday and Saturday respectively. JaShawn Colton 22, 415 Gholston St., Inverness had turned himself in on September 14.
All three are currently in the Sunflower County jail. Wilburn’s bond has been set at $500,000 and Cooper has a $250,000 bond, however Colton has a hold on him because of a pending murder charge so he is currently unable to bond out.
Sgt. Irish Johnson of the Indianola Police Department said Colton was the alleged driver of the vehicle, which is owned by his girlfriend. According to Johnson she is the one who convinced Colton to turn himself in. It is believed that Wilburn was the shooter.
He was riding in the front passenger-side seat.
The U.S. Marshals were called in to assist in the apprehension of Cooper and Wilburn and received a tip that the men had fled to Southaven. According to Johnson, they were able to locate Cooper on Thursday but were unable to locate Wilburn at that time.
Johnson said Wilburn heard that the marshals were looking for him and called one of his girlfriends to come and pick him up from Southaven. She brought him back to another girlfriend’s house, although she was supposed to take him to the county jail.
Johnson said the marshals made contact with that woman and she was supposed to bring him to the officials but did not.
“He turns himself in that Sunday morning,” Johnson said. “He said he had to sow his royal oats before he turned himself in.”
On the day of the incident, officer Briona Brown responded to shots fired and reportedly saw three men in a Chevy Tahoe and at least one of the men was discharging a firearm.
The officer initiated her blue lights and siren and the men reportedly fired in her direction. Johnson said additional shots were fired at the officer in the Pershing and Roosevelt streets area as the officer gave chase. They proceeded to U.S. 49 south and ended up in Colton’s mother yard in Inverness.
The three men abandoned the vehicle on foot and police found shell casings and impounded the Tahoe. Johnson said evidence is still being gathered and interviews are still being conducted. Other arrests are possible although Johnson did not indicate whether charges would be filed on the women involved.
