Brandon Kendrick, West Blocton, Alabama man shoots and kills wife, Kelsey Kendrick and four young children, including their two own children and that of two other relatives at Bibb County residence. No known motive.
An Alabama man is alleged to have shot and killed his wife along with their two children and his young niece and nephew an hour after one of the children’s birthday party, Thursday night.
Brandon Allan Kendrick II, 32, was arrested on five counts of capital murder for the death of his wife, Kelsey Kendrick, and four children, Bibb County, court records show. The victims were all shot in the head with a handgun, according to an arrest warrant.
Bibb County Sheriff Jody Wade said that Brandon Kendrick of West Blocton was the father of two of the children, Kaleb, 6, and Kynli, 2, and the uncle of the other two, Colton, 9, and Haley Daniels, 6. The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said the family had gathered to celebrate Colton’s 9th birthday.
‘It’s absolutely horrible. It’s unimaginable what the family is going through, what the friends of the family are experiencing, what the community is feeling right now,’ Wade told reporters. ‘It was just a horrific scene that even seasoned officers told me it is the worst thing they’ve ever seen.’
Law enforcement officers responded after someone in the home called emergency officials to say that a child had been shot. ‘As officers are going, they are saying there are more children that have been shot,’ Wade said.
Wade was arrest at the home without a struggle and taken into custody, WVTM reported. Court records did not show whether he has a lawyer who can speak on his behalf.
Close knit community shaken, no known motive
The shooting occurred at about 10 p.m. in a rural area of the county near West Blocton which is about 40 miles southwest of Birmingham, WIAT-TV reported.
The shooting left the close knit community shaken.
‘It’s heartbreaking all the way around,’ Bibb County resident Haley Smitherman told WIAT. ‘I mean my prayers are with the families.’
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s State Bureau of Investigation is handling the investigation.
Of note, the shooting comes on the heels of Brandon Kendrick’s alleged schizophrenic episodes having worsened over the previous two weeks according to the dailymail.
No known motive was immediately known.
