Miss. Man Fatally Shot Woman And Her 8-Year-Old Son Before Lighting Their Trailer On Fire: Police
James Fulgham, 31, was charged with two counts of murder, arson and auto theft
Scott County Sheriff's Office
James FulghamA Mississippi man was charged with murder after confessing to shooting and killing his girlfriend and her 8-year-old son, then lighting their trailer on fire, police allege.
Scott County Sheriff Mike Lee tells PEOPLE that James Fulgham, 31, shot Zina Williams, 43, and her son Zacchesus, who were found dead by firefighters who responded to a report of a fire Monday evening.
Lee says Fulgham fled the trailer in Williams’ car and was later arrested in Lauderdale County, Miss., one county over, the next day. Williams’ car was found hidden in the woods behind Fulgham’s home.
Zacchesus was shot three times and Zina was shot once in the head, Lee says.
Fulgham is charged with two counts of capital murder, one count of arson and auto theft, police say. He is in custody at the Scott County Sheriff’s Office and has been denied bail, according to Lee. It is not clear if he has retained an attorney.
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The incident is still under investigation, but Lee says investigators believe that Zacchesus was shot first.
“It is a horrific event,” Lee says, adding that it’s Scott County’s first murder this year. “We don’t have things like this happen in this community. To also have a child killed has taken a lot out of the men and women who work here.”
“Hopefully we do have some answers for the victims’ family,” he added.
Zacchesus was a student at Forest Elementary School.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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