It has been one of those days for the Columbus Police Department this morning.
A flurry of calls had police scrambling to respond to reports of a murder, a threatened suicide, a car flying through Southside at a high speed and a pair of car crashes, all before 8 a.m.
Just after 7 a.m., a unidentified child called 911 claiming a man had just killed his mother. The child then said the man left in a white Honda and hung up. E911 traced the call to a TracFone — a disposable cellphone — located near 2112 14th Avenue North. Officers with the Columbus Police Department arrived on scene but were unable to locate the child or his mother. After a through check of the area, law enforcement left the scene.
At 7:14 a.m., emergency personnel responded to Mississippi University for Women for a man threatening to commit suicide. The man, whose name is not being released, called his mother who then called 911. Law enforcement was unable to locate the man on scene, according to scanner traffic.
Less than 10 minutes later, officers with the CPD were involved in a chase with Jaylan Cunningham. Cunningham was driving at speeds of over 70 miles per hour through Southside Columbus. According to scanner traffic, officers were advised to not pursue the suspect. Cunningham’s vehicle was found abandoned near Friendship Cemetery near 4th Street South. He was last seen wearing a black jacket and blue jeans. Cunningham is described as a black male weighing 202 pounds and 6-foot-2 inches tall.
At 7:33 a.m., a two-vehicle accident occurred near the intersection of Highway 82 and Military Road. The accident backed up traffic but no injuries were reported. At 7:35, a second accident occurred near the same location. According to witnesses on scene, a woman driving a white two-door vehicle was driving eastbound and turned to look a the first accident. Witnesses said her vehicle ran off in the ditch and when she attempted to pull it back on the highway, it flipped on its top and slip approximately 20 yards down the road. A young child crawled out of the wrecked vehicle holding his head. The female driver also crawled out of the overturned vehicle. The extent of their injuries were not known at press time.
CPD Investigations Secretary Latasha Key could not be reached for comment.
Sarah Fowler covered crime, education and community related events for The Dispatch.
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