At least 19 people shot, 3 killed, outside Mississippi nightclub

At least 19 people were shot Sunday morning, three fatally, when someone opened fire near a nightclub in Indianola, Mississippi, according to witnesses and local officials. No arrests were immediately made.

The incident happened at around 1 a.m. on Sunday when officers were called to a mass shooting on Church Street in Indianola, a small city in Sunflower County, about 83 miles northwest of Jackson.

On Sunday night, the Indianola Police Department confirmed that at least 19 people had been shot, including three teenagers who were pronounced dead. Some of the injured were airlifted to regional hospitals.

Witnesses reported hearing dozens of gunshots during the shooting, which occurred in the vicinity of a club. Some of the victims were shot directly while others were hit by ricochet bullets. The motive was not immediately known.

“Several people said that they were standing out there, and they started to hear gunshots,” Indianola Police Chief Ronald Sampson told the local newspaper, The Enterprise-Tocsin. “Nobody has really given us anything solid.”

Sunflower County Coroner Heather Burton identified the fatalities as 19-year-old Areon Butler, 19-year-old Cameron Lee Butts, and 19-year-old Marquette Baites.

No arrests were made as of late Sunday night.