A Mississippi man wanted in connection with a triple shooting that left his mother and two sisters dead was fatally shot by state troopers in Arizona, authorities said Monday.
Authorities in Ridgeland, north of Jackson, discovered the women’s bodies at a home on Mother’s Day, Police Chief Brian Myers said in an email.
Police believe they were fatally shot in the house Saturday, he said.
Myers identified the victims as Ida Thomas Welch, 76; Vicky Renee Welch, 56; and Crystal Lynn Welch, 42. They were found after family members requested a welfare check, he said.
Police obtained an arrest warrant alleging murder for Ida Welch’s son, Ivory James Welch III, Myers said.
Ivory Welch fled the state and was found Monday by state troopers in Arizona, Myers said.
A spokesman for the Arizona Department of Public Safety said that troopers were alerted to a sighting of the suspect at 7:30 a.m. around Safford, west of the New Mexico line. When authorities spotted him nearly three hours later on a nearby interstate, the spokesman said in a statement, they conducted a traffic stop and tried to take him into custody.
Ivory Welch got out of his car and "presented a firearm, which resulted in a trooper-involved shooting," the the statement said.
The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene. No law enforcement agents were injured in the gunfire.
Authorities did not provide additional details about the police shooting or the triple homicide.
In a statement, the American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi said Crystal Welch was the president of its board of directors. She had been in the role since last year.
"I just cannot process today’s news," Executive Director Jarvis Dortch said in a statement. "She was always asking what more she could do to support our team and our work. Our staff and board will forever be grateful for her commitment to equality and justice. Her passion for life, infectious spirit and enthusiasm will be missed."
