Four arrests have been made in the Cotton District Shooting of Joseph Tillman, 21, a Mississippi State University senior marketing major from Schlater, according to a Starkville Police Department news release.
Jaylen M. Barker, 20, has been charged with murder, and is being held on a bond of $1 million. Jamario Pippins, 22, Tyler Harris, 16, and Brandon Sherrod, 19, have all been charged with accessory to murder, and are each bing held on a $500,000 bond. All are from the Columbus/Lowndes County area, according to the release.
According to the release, the shooting took place on Maxwell Street at approximately 1:50 a.m. Sunday morning, and was related to an armed robbery.
Mississippi State Chief Communications Officer Sid Salter said in a series of tweets that the university would cooperate fully with the investigation, and that counseling will be available for students affected by Tillman's death.
The investigation is ongoing, and involves the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Marshal Task Force, the Oktibbeha County Sheriff's Office and the MSU Police department in addition to the SPD.
Anyone with information is asked to call the SPD at 662-323-4131, or Golden Triangle Crime Stoppers at 1-800-530-7151.