Family members killed, suspected shooter found dead after Rankin County standoff
BRANDON, Mississippi — Two people were fatally shot Friday afternoon on family land in Rankin County, and a suspected gunman was later found dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after an hours-long SWAT standoff, the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office said.
Authorities identified the victims as Walter E. Birdsong Jr., 62, and Amanda L. Birdsong, 43. The suspected shooter, Kurt Tyler Birdsong, 56, was found dead inside a bathroom of the residence after deputies breached the home, the sheriff’s office said. All three were family members involved in an ongoing dispute over land, investigators said.
Deputies responded to a 911 call just before 4 p.m. reporting two people had been shot and that an armed suspect had retreated inside a residence on the property, the sheriff’s office said. The Rankin County Sheriff’s Office SWAT team, negotiators and technical response personnel responded. Neighbors were evacuated as a precaution.
The sheriff’s office said it requested assistance from the FBI’s Jackson Field Office, the Mississippi Office of Homeland Security, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Clinton Bomb Squad, citing an elevated potential threat to law enforcement and nearby residents because the family operated a firearms-related business on the property.
W.E. Birdsong & Associates Inc., located at 1435 Monterey Road in Florence, has operated since 1973 and holds a federal firearms license issued by the ATF, the sheriff’s office said. The company manufactures Black-T, a weapons coating used by government and military clients, the sheriff’s office said. Rankin County Deputy Coroner Cliff Dunlap responded to the scene and transported the deceased. The investigation is ongoing. This is a developing story and will be updated as more details emerge.
