Birmingham shooting, Alabama mass shooting, Birmingham shooting reward/ Newslooks/ BIRMINGHAM/ Ala./ J. mansour/ Morning Edition/ Birmingham officials are offering a $100,000 reward for information on a mass shooting that killed four and injured 17. Police believe the attack was targeted, possibly a murder-for-hire. As authorities investigate, they urge the public to help bring the suspects to justice.
Birmingham Mass Shooting Quick Looks:
- Birmingham officials plead for public assistance in solving mass shooting
- FBI and Crime Stoppers offer a $100,000 reward
- Shooting targeted a specific individual, possibly a hit job
- Four killed, 17 injured; five remain hospitalized
- Over 100 shell casings recovered; weapons used may have included modified semiautomatics
- No arrests made; police are sifting through tips
Birmingham Mass Shooting: Officials Seek Public Help, Offer $100k Reward
Deep Look:
Birmingham, Alabama, officials are urging the public to come forward with any information that could lead to the arrest of the suspects responsible for a tragic mass shooting over the weekend. The attack claimed the lives of four people and left 17 others wounded. To incentivize cooperation, a combined $100,000 reward is being offered, with the FBI and Crime Stoppers contributing $50,000 each.
At a news conference on Monday, Police Chief Scott Thurmond explained that police continue to investigate the crime, following up on leads and tips that have been received. He noted that of the victims, five remain hospitalized as of Monday morning.
The violence unfolded late Saturday night in Birmingham’s Five Points South district, an area known for its busy nightlife. Witnesses described a terrifying scene as multiple shooters opened fire on a crowd gathered near the Hush Lounge. Bloodstains still marred the sidewalk the next morning, evidence of the chaos that ensued.
Authorities believe the shooting was a targeted attack, possibly a murder-for-hire situation. Thurmond explained that one of the deceased victims may have been the intended target, and that multiple shooters had gotten out of a vehicle and opened fire before quickly fleeing the scene. He characterized the attack as a “hit” aimed at one specific individual.
“We believe that there was a ‘hit,’ if you will, on that particular person,” Thurmond said, describing the deadly encounter.
During the aftermath, investigators recovered over 100 shell casings from the scene, and initial evidence suggests that some of the weapons used may have been modified to fire automatically. The shooters are believed to have used machine gun conversion devices, which can make semi-automatic weapons discharge at a much higher rate. Police are still working to determine what types of guns were involved and whether anyone from the crowd returned fire, potentially creating a deadly crossfire.
The four victims of the shooting included Anitra Holloman, 21, from Bessemer, Alabama, as well as Birmingham residents Tahj Booker, 27, and Carlos McCain, 27. The identity of the fourth victim, a male, was still pending as of Sunday evening.
Mayor Randall Woodfin, speaking at the press conference, expressed his deep sadness and frustration over the toll the shooting has taken on the city. While acknowledging the widespread pain and fear the incident has caused, Woodfin made it clear that his top priority is to capture and convict those responsible.
“This mass shooting has a heavy toll on the community as a whole,” Woodfin said, “but nothing more harmful than the emotional and physical pain of these actual victims. But I want to make myself very clear on what the priority is: It is to hunt down, capture, arrest and convict the people who are responsible for this mass shooting.”
This incident marks the 31st mass killing in the United States in 2024, with 23 of those involving shootings, according to James Alan Fox, a criminologist at Northeastern University. Fox helps manage a mass killings database in partnership with the Associated Press and USA Today. Alarmingly, this marks the third mass shooting in Birmingham alone this year. Two other incidents in the city earlier in 2024 also involved quadruple homicides.
As police continue to seek out tips from the public and piece together the evidence, they urge anyone with information to come forward, reminding potential tipsters that they can remain anonymous. The investigation remains ongoing as officials work to bring closure to the victims’ families and justice for the community.
