In an incident involving a road rage dispute, a man has been taken into custody after allegedly shooting another driver in Tennessee.
Memphis police responded to the shooting on June 10 at around 7:15 a.m.
According to an arrest affidavit from the Shelby County criminal court, officers discovered a black Toyota pickup truck that had crashed into a pole, with the driver slumped over in the seat. The driver, identified as Obed Merida, had sustained a gunshot wound to the head, and the truck’s back window displayed multiple bullet holes. Merida was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
A passenger who had been in the vehicle informed the police that Merida had picked him up that morning. According to the passenger’s statement in the affidavit, a four-door red sedan had cut them off on the road. Merida maneuvered around the sedan and then moved back in front of it. Shortly afterward, the passenger reported hearing a single gunshot, which caused the truck to veer off the road and collide with a pole.
Through surveillance footage obtained from a nearby gas station, law enforcement authorities identified the driver of the red sedan as 39-year-old Damarr Jones. On June 11, police obtained a search warrant for Jones’ home where they found the sedan parked in the driveway.
Inside Jones’ apartment, officers discovered a loaded handgun that matched the make of the weapon used in the shooting. The gun contained the same ammunition found at the scene. Additionally, police uncovered separate bags containing ecstasy and fentanyl, a digital scale, an empty gun magazine, and the shirt worn by Jones in the surveillance video.
Jones, who has a previous conviction for robbery, was apprehended and charged with second-degree murder, being a felon in possession of a handgun, possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony, and possession of a controlled substance with the intent to sell.
