MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Justin Green said he had been following the search Wednesday for a man on a shooting rampage in Memphis but never thought it would end behind his home in Whitehaven.
Green said he had been talking to friends on the phone about the shootings when he heard a loud crash. He ran outside and started streaming live on Facebook.
“I was inside of my gate at my house. There was a fence around my house, and I was actually at the fence where I was filming,” said Green.
Green said as soon as he heard the helicopters and saw the massive police presence on Ivan and Hodge, he knew it was the shooter.
“I was so close, and I was wondering if he would shoot at police or what was going to happen here,” Green said. “A lot of times when people do that psychologically, they will commit suicide by cop. That’s the end game.”
Green said instead, he saw officers put the suspect in handcuffs and then the back of a police cruiser. He said he wanted to make sure he captured it all on camera.
“I shot it to let people know, yes, he has been caught. Yes, you can sleep safe tonight,” said Green. “Memphis police did a great job.”
Police said they took Ezekiel Kelly,19, into custody after he killed four people and wounded three others during a nearly 24-hour shooting spree.
They said Kelly was live on Facebook when he shot one of the victims at an Autozone store on Jackson Avenue.
Kelly is facing a slew of charges, including first-degree murder.
“We really need to start paying more attention to these children. We are just having children. They are just out here living,” said Green. “They are not being prayed for, and they are being taught how to pray.”
Green said now Kelly is looking at life in prison or worse.
“He is 19! I am 38, and I can’t imagine going to jail for the rest of my life, and he will be in there for the rest of his life if they don’t give him the death penalty,” said Green.
Kelly is being held without bond. He made his first appearance before a judge on Friday.
