Family Says Baby Was Inside Vehicle When Officers Opened Fire During Shoplifting Response
A Mississippi family is demanding answers after a 1-year-old boy was killed when police opened fire on a vehicle outside a Walmart while responding to a reported shoplifting call.
Kohen Wiley was inside the vehicle with his mother and a family friend when officers fired shots Sunday outside the Walmart in Senatobia, Mississippi, about 40 miles south of Memphis. The child was fatally struck, and the family friend was critically injured, according to attorney Ben Crump, who has been retained by the family along with attorney Van Turner.
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is now investigating the officer-involved shooting.
“Kohen Wiley was a baby. His mother, who has not been charged with any crime, says she was trying to communicate to officers that there was a baby in the car,” Crump said in a statement. “They fired anyway, leading to the death of an innocent 1-year-old. We intend to seek justice for baby Kohen and the life that was stolen from him.”
A 1-year-old child is dead after police officers in Mississippi opened fire on a vehicle in a crowded Walmart parking lot in Senatobia. His mother, who has not been charged with any crime, says she was trying to communicate to officers that there was a baby in the car. They fired… pic.twitter.com/VWcDtiz6T4
— Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) June 16, 2026
Police Say Vehicle Drove Toward Officers
In a statement, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation said officers responded to a shoplifting call and “encountered two subjects and a juvenile child fleeing from the store into a vehicle.”
Investigators said officers attempted to stop the vehicle, and the driver allegedly drove in the direction of officers, nearly striking one of them. An officer then discharged their weapon, striking the vehicle before it fled the scene.
No officers were reported injured.
The Senatobia Police Department said shortly after the incident that it would provide full transparency, while the city of Senatobia later urged the public to avoid speculation while the investigation continues.
“We understand that emotions are high and that many questions remain,” the city said in a statement. “We respectfully ask our community to avoid speculation and the spread of unverified information while the investigation is underway. Please allow the investigative process to take its course so that the facts—not rumors or assumptions—guide our understanding of this tragic event.”
Family Disputes Shoplifting Allegation
Members of Kohen Wiley’s family have denied that anyone shoplifted. According to WREG, a witness said she saw one woman carrying diapers and another woman carrying the infant as they headed toward their vehicle.
“I seen the officers take off running, not in the car, I’m talking about on feet, and these are the Sheriffs and the police,” the witness said. “They’re running through the parking lot and I see the car take off you know, so in my head, I’m like, I know they’re not chasing the car, they don’t think they’re going to catch the car. Then I hear gunshots and I’m like, I know they’re not shooting at a car that’s leaving in a public, this is Walmart.”
The shooting has left the family and community questioning how a reported shoplifting call escalated into deadly gunfire in a public parking lot.
A gathering was held Tuesday outside Senatobia City Hall, where relatives and community members called for accountability in Kohen’s death.
For the family, the central question remains painfully simple: why did a response to an alleged shoplifting call end with a baby dead?
