MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Memphis Police have released the names of four family members who were killed in the string of shootings over the weekend.
Authorities told ABC24 the gunman killed four people and seriously hurt one teen, before killing himself hours later.
One of the victim’s half-sisters, Shatitra Bell has spoken out about her loved one, Tawanda Barron, and her impact.
As details continue to unfold about the victims. It was a devastating and very unexpected ending for Bell when she learned about her beloved sister Tawanda.
“In a lot of years, I never thought that I’d lose my sister to this. It’s just hard. Just trying to stay strong and be that backbone,” Bell expressed.
Emotions have been running high for Bell, as she has struggled to come to terms with the fact that her big sister is no longer just a phone call away.
“It’s terrible out here. My heart goes out to my family,” Bell said. “It’s going to take some time for us to get over this…It’s just. It’s just a lot right now.”
Bell explained that she will miss the way Tawanda would light up any room she was in with her smile and infectious spirit, and how she would always put others first.
“She was just the life of the party, and every time we would get ready to take a picture, she would say, ‘Money!’ you know like, ‘Smile’ and we would just bust out and start laughing. It would just be so funny. But we’re going to miss that,” Bell stated.
Memphis Police said Mavis Christian Jr. shot and killed Tawanda, two other women, along with a 13-year-old girl, and seriously hurt a 15-year-old girl. Police said the shooting was domestic and all the victims knew Christian Jr.
Police gave her name as Tawanda Christian, the same as her estranged partner and accused killer, but Bell said her sister never got married, and always stayed with her maiden name Barron.
“It’s just crazy that he took her life," Bell said. "Now my nieces and nephews and family. It’s just a hard loss for us right now.”
Police told ABC24 the shooting spree started at 5:43 p.m. on Saturday afternoon on Field Lark Drive, where the gunman shot and killed a woman and a teen girl, and seriously hurt another teen.
About an hour later, police said the gunman killed a woman on Warrington Road, and just before 10 p.m., Tawanda was killed on Howard Drive.
The search for Christian Jr. ended on Sunday morning around 3:30 a.m., on Alta Road when police said they found him with a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a car.
“We’re losing too many young people, grown people, innocent people for no reason, we gotta stop,” Bell said. “Like ya’ll gotta want to do better. And these folks out here with these guns, they feel like they got the power and that’s not the way.”
Tawanda had two sisters and left behind a son and a daughter. Bell expressed that Tawanda’s main priority was her family and she loved being a grandmother. Most of the time, when people saw her, they would also see her grandchildren.