Clarksdale suffered its seventh homicide this year with a murder and robbery at D&T Supermarket late Friday afternoon on South State Street.
Police have fanned out over the community seeking information on this capital offense that has shaken the community on Good Friday. A $1,000 reward was offered by the city for tips and any details leading to an arrest.
D&T Supermarket is one of the last Chinese groceries in the Delta and a favorite of tourist wanting to experience a taste of Mississippi culture. The store has been a Highway 61 fixture for decades and was one of the last neighborhood grocery stores in town. It offered to deliver groceries to homes in Clarksdale – way before Walmart or Amazon started – free of charge
“We are asking the community to help us with this,” said Clarksdale Police Chief Robbie Linley. “People talk and people know things and we are asking them to call us and help us make an arrest.”
Linley, who was working the scene Friday night at 8:17 p.m., with four other investigators, said a store video captured the incident
Linley also said the culprit apparently did not get any money in commission of this murder and robbery as he fled the store after the shooting started.
“A black male entered the store wearing a mask and produced a weapon,” said Linley. “Shots were fired and the owner of the store was shot.”
Police have released a photo of a slim, black male in a black or dark blue hoodie dressed in shorts and pointing a black handgun at someone behind the counter. Store owner Qi “Paul” Bowen, 72, was shot multiple times in the robbery and murder.
Linley said the shooter left the store on foot and police are reviewing SkyCop cameras in the area looking for a possible vehicle or direction of travel of the culprit.
“This is being investigated at a capital crime at this time,” said Linley. “Murder in the commission of a robbery is a capital crime and can result in the death penalty if the courts so desire.”
Linley said this is the first robbery and murder of a store employee in Clarksdale in some time.
“We always need the community’s help in solving crime of any nature, but this is violent crime of a business that has been in this community a long time,” said Linley “People know and hear things and we need them to call us immediately.”
Armed robbery is a violent felony and coupled with the death in the commission of a robbery – regardless of the circumstances – is among the most serious crimes in Mississippi.
$1,000 Reward for all recent homicides
The Clarksdale Police Department is also offering $1,000 rewards for any of the five unsolved homicides in Clarksdale since the first of 2024.
Anyone with details about a violent crime, or any felony in Clarksdale, is asked to contact the Clarksdale Police Department at 621-8156, or simply dial 911. All calls remain anonymous and cash is paid to those providing information that leads to solving a crime.
This is the seventh homicide in Clarksdale since the first of the year and the first capital murder of 2024. Five of the murders this year involve teenagers.
The community is reminded that aiding or abetting the person or persons who committed these crimes is a felony and can result in charges of being an accomplice, which can result in them being charged with murder.
Family and friends are also reminded that not telling authorities where a suspect might be or lying to police about details of these murders can result in felony charges that can result in jail time.
