Newly Released Senatobia Police Records Do Not Identify the Officers Who Fired or Explain How an Alleged Shoplifting Call Ended With a 1-Year-Old Boy Dead
Nearly one month after Senatobia police shot and killed 1-year-old Kohen Wiley outside a Mississippi Walmart, newly released department records provide few answers about how an alleged shoplifting investigation escalated into deadly gunfire.
The two-page incident report, obtained by Mississippi Today through a public records request, does not identify the officers who responded, state how many officers were present or include officer narratives explaining the use of force. The report also does not indicate whether investigators identified any witnesses.
Kohen was killed June 14 while sitting inside a Ford Fusion with his mother, Vellesiya Wiley, and her 22-year-old friend in the Walmart parking lot on U.S. Highway 51.
Police Report Documents Call but Not Shooting
According to the records, Senatobia police were dispatched shortly after 1:30 p.m. following allegations that someone had shoplifted baby clothing and a large package of Pampers Easy Ups diapers. Department call logs show police were notified at 2:04 p.m. that shots had been fired.
However, the report does not explain what happened during those roughly 30 minutes or describe the circumstances that prompted officers to fire into the vehicle. It states only that the Ford Fusion was impounded shortly before 4:30 p.m.
Wiley, 20, has said she was sitting in the front passenger seat with Kohen on her lap when officers fired three or four rounds at the car. Kohen was struck in the chest. Wiley’s friend was struck in the arm and thigh and suffered critical injuries.
“I watched my baby take his first breath and I watched my baby take his last breath,” Wiley previously said. “I’m still in disbelief about the traumatizing event that occurred that took my one and only child, baby Kohen.”
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
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation said the driver moved in the direction of officers and nearly struck one of them before an officer opened fire. The Tate County Sheriff’s Office similarly described the vehicle as “oncoming.” No officers were injured.
Kohen’s family disputes that account and says the car was moving away from officers.
Autopsy Findings Challenge Police Account
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represents the Wiley family, said a forensic review found that the bullet entered Kohen’s body from the side, raising questions about whether the officer was positioned directly in front of the car and in danger of being struck.
Crump also released a photograph showing that the vehicle’s front passenger-side window had been shattered. The image appeared to show another bullet hole on the passenger side of the windshield. Crump said the damage supports the family’s claim that officers fired from beside the vehicle rather than directly in its path.
The officer who fired the fatal shot has not been publicly identified. Senatobia police Lt. Shane Howell confirmed that Sgt. Hunter Foster was placed on administrative leave two days after the shooting, but authorities have not said whether Foster fired his weapon or whether additional officers also opened fire.
Family Continues Demanding Video
Senatobia police initially pledged “full transparency,” but the department and the Mississippi Department of Public Safety have declined repeated requests to release body-camera and dashboard-camera recordings.
Walmart has also withheld its surveillance footage, saying company policy permits it to share video with law enforcement while an investigation remains active. The company said it is cooperating with the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation.
Crump said releasing the recordings is necessary to determine whether officers faced an immediate threat.
“If that is the truth, then show us that,” Crump said of the police account. “The longer you delay releasing the video, the more distrustful we become.”
The attorney has called for the release of all police body-camera footage, patrol-car recordings and Walmart surveillance video from the parking lot.
“We’re going to try to continue to demand transparency,” Crump said.
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation has described the case as a top priority but has not announced when its investigation will be completed or whether the recordings will eventually be released.
