Den mistenkte Cory Godbolt. (foto: Politiet)

Minst åtte personer er drept i en skyteepisode i Mississippi, blant dem en visesheriff, opplyser amerikansk politi til AP.

En mistenkt er pågrepet, The Clarion Ledger oppgir at han heter Cory Godbolt.

Den mistenkte for skytingen, Cory Godbolt, arresteres. Skjermbilde fra en video publisert av The Clarion Ledger

Det har foreløpig kommet få opplysninger om omstendighetene rundt hendelsen.

Authorities in Mississippi say a suspect is in custody after eight people were killed in a shooting, including a sheriff’s deputy.

Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said the shootings occurred at three separate homes Saturday night in rural Lincoln County. Two of the homes are in Brookhaven and one is in Bogue Chitto. The area is about 68 miles (109 kilometers) south of Jackson, the capital.

Strain said investigators were gathering evidence at all three locations.

Strain said charges have not yet been filed against the suspect and that it would be «premature» to discuss a motive.

Det er ikke opplyst om Godbolt kjente sine ofre, men på en video publisert av The Clarion-Ledger sier han ting som tyder på at det startet som en familiekrangel.

«I ain’t fit to live, not after what I done,» Cory Godbolt told The Clarion-Ledger after his arrest. The newspaper recorded video of the suspect talking as he sat with hands cuffed behind his back on a roadside surrounded by law enforcement officers.

Godbolt said he was talking with his wife and members of her family when somebody called authorities.

«I was having a conversation with her stepdaddy and her mama and her, my wife, about me taking my children home,» the suspect says on the video. «Somebody called the officer, people that didn’t even live at the house. That’s what they do. They intervene.

«They cost him his life,» the suspect said, apparently in reference to the slain deputy. «I’m sorry.»

I videoen på The Clarion-Ledgers nettside forteller han at han ønsket å bli drept av politiet:

«My intentions was to have God kill me. I ran out of bullets,» he said. «Suicide by cop was my intention.»»

Gov. Phil Bryant issued a statement asking state residents to pray for the victims. He also noted the «sacrifice» made by law enforcement officers to protect and serve their communities.

ABC News/AP: Police say 8 dead in Mississippi shooting

The Clarion-Ledger: Man arrested, believed to be responsible for 8 dead, including Lincoln deputy