An 11-year-old boy has told police he shot and killed an 82-year-old man who is the former mayor of a small Louisiana community and his 31-year-old daughter .
Minden Police Chief Jared McIver said the victims were Joe Cornelius, 82, and his daughter, Keisha Miles, 31, according to KTBS-TV.
Cornelius was a city councilman who was appointed mayor for several months after a sitting mayor died while in office
McIver said the boy is related to Cornelius, according to NBC. The boy’s grandmother is Miles’s mother, McIver said.
The boy faces two charges of first-degree murder and is in jail with bail set at $500,000.
Neighbors said the shooting followed an argument between Cornelius and the boy over credit card charges for video games, according to KSLA-TV.
A neighbor KSLA did not name said the boy was autistic.
McIver said the boy did not appear to show remorse.
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“Now people, I understand, and here is something I have to say, everyone grieves differently. But I think we all know what grieving looks like and what it should look like and I just, you know, didn’t see it,” McIver said.
Police responded to the house where Cornelius and Miles were found dead after neighbors reported shots being fired, according to KTSB-TV.
“We’ve got a confession. But in these cases when you’re in, it’s very delicate,” McIver said.
“When you’re dealing with a child of this age, you know, in their stage, we’re looking at, you know, was there motive, what was the motive? What what causes what sparked it, you know, since the victims were shot?” he said.
“And, you know, a lot of thoughts come rushing in here when, you know, you’re dealing with someone this young. How, why, where did you know? We know where the firearm came from that was used. And it’s just you know, it’s one of those things that we’ve still got a lot of unanswered questions,” McIver added.
McIver said the 11-year-old suspect was “scared,” but appeared to have a “mindset to commit a crime like this.”
“But it’s it’s a sad situation. It’s just so the community is mourning the loss of Mr. Joe Cornelius,” McIver said.
“Mr. Joe is always nice to the police department, you know, just always brought a laugh joke and all. I mean, at his age, 82 years old, still getting around, doing things. And people love Mr. Joe,” he said.
“Never heard, I’ve never heard anybody say a negative thing about him. So and then, you know, this the female, being his daughter. This is a terrible situation,” McIver explained.
