Suspect identified after man, 5 children killed in Oklahoma
MUSKOGEE, Okla. – Police identified a suspect arrested after a man and five children were found fatally shot Tuesday morning at a home in Muskogee, according to KOKI-TV.
Authorities said a woman was also shot and wounded. She was taken to a hospital for treatment of her injuries.
Update 7:38 p.m. ET Feb. 2: Police in Muskogee said the man killed was 24-year-old Javarion Lee, the brother of the suspected shooter, KOKI reported.
Update 3:55 p.m. ET Feb. 2: The family of the woman hospitalized after she was shot Tuesday morning in an attack that left six others dead identified her to KOKI as Brittany Anderson, 27.
Anderson’s family identified the children killed Tuesday as Que’dynce, 9; Nevaeh, 6; Harmony, 5; Jaidus, 3; and Jalayia, 2, according to KOKI. They added that the suspected shooter, 25-year-old Jarron Deajon Pridgeon, was Brittany’s boyfriend.
Update 2:35 p.m. ET Feb. 2: Jarron Deajon Pridgeon, 25, was taken into custody early Tuesday following a brief foot chase, KOKI reported.
Police said they found Pridgeon armed with a gun while responding to a report of several people shot at a home in the 900 block of Indiana Street. An officer involved in the pursuit fired a single shot at Pridgeon as he ran from the area, KOKI reported. Police said the shot missed.
In a statement obtained by KOKI, officials with Muskogee Public Schools identified two of the shooting victims as students at Creek Elementary School. Thy said a third student from the school was also injured.
“We are saddened by this tragic loss and our deepest sympathies go out to all of those impacted,” Dr. Jarod Mendenhall, superintendent of Muskogee Public Schools, said in the statement. “No words can adequately express our sadness in losing these students and our thoughts and prayers are with this family.”
Original report: Around 1:30 a.m., officers responded to a report of multiple people shot at a home in the 900 block of Indiana Street, KOKI and The Associated Press reported. Once police arrived, they encountered a man who was holding a firearm, authorities said. KOKI reported the person was taken into custody after a brief foot chase.
Inside the home, officers found a man and four small children dead, KOKI reported. A fifth child later died after being flown to a Tulsa hospital for treatment, according to the news station. Their ages were not immediately released.
A seventh person, identified as a woman, was taken to the hospital with injuries described as life-threatening, KOKI reported.
Authorities continue to investigate.