It was just before 7:30 on a regular Thursday morning when gunshots broke the quiet at the Trinity Lakes Apartments in Cordova. A young mother was standing outside on Racquetball Lane, walking one of her kids to the school bus stop. Seconds later, she was lying on the ground, and neighbors were calling 911 in panic.
Memphis police officers arrived within minutes, but there was nothing emergency crews could do for the woman. She had suffered a fatal gunshot wound and died right there on the scene. Authorities have not released her name publicly yet, out of respect for her family.
The situation turned even scarier when officers realized her two young children were missing. Investigators quickly figured out that the kids’ father, 35-year-old Larry Berry, had put them in a black Mercedes sedan and driven away right after the shooting.
That set off a frantic search across state lines. Police departments, state troopers, and federal agents spread out across West Tennessee and North Mississippi, looking for any sign of that black Mercedes and the two missing kids.
Word finally came back hours later from Robinsonville, Mississippi, a small town about 40 miles south of Memphis. Officers found both children alive and unharmed at a home in Tunica County, bringing massive relief to family members who had been waiting on edge all morning.
While the kids were safe, the search for Berry continued further south. Police tracked him to a wooded area near Marks, Mississippi, roughly 90 miles from where the shooting took place. When officers reached Berry in the woods, he had a critical gunshot wound. Paramedics rushed him to a nearby hospital, but he died shortly after arrival.
Back in Cordova, folks living at Trinity Lakes Apartments are still trying to wrap their heads around the whole thing. The kids are safe with relatives now, but they are left facing a long road ahead without their mother.
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