Jatavis Williams charged with murder and aggravated assault

COLUMBUS, MISS. (WCBI) – A Columbus man is facing several charges, including murder, for two separate shootings.

21-year-old Jatavis Williams is charged with murder and two counts of aggravated assault.

The aggravated assault charges come from an October 28th shooting on Main Street and are unrelated to this week’s homicide.

He was taken into custody this morning by Columbus police.

Bond has not been set for Williams.

The investigation started after 24-year-old Tarcari Walker was shot to death near the intersection of 22nd Street and 7th Avenue North on Monday.

Shelton says Walker was shot in the street and ran onto the front porch of a nearby home.

Walker died at the scene.

Shelton believes Walker and Williams knew each other Walker walked up to a vehicle and then got into an argument.

The police chief says people in the community played a big role in the arrest.

“One of the things I want to do is reach out and thank the citizens of Columbus because without their help we wouldn’t be where we are at today. There is a lot of people that call in a lot of tips to Crime Stoppers,” said Police Chief Fred shelton. “There were people that gave personal information. And again, we want to thank the media for putting the information out. That played a big factor in it. So this is truly a community effort, from the media sources and from the citizens calling in the tips. We appreciate that!”

Lowndes County Coroner Greg Merchant expects an autopsy to be done next week.