By SPEAKIN’ OUT NEWS
A suspect has been charged in the weekend shooting death of a 55-year-old man outside a southwest Birmingham convenience store, marking the second homicide at the same location in less than two months, police said.
Toshaud McIntosh, 35, is charged with murder in the killing of Harold McArthor King, Birmingham police announced Monday night.
The shooting occurred around 3:30 a.m. Saturday outside the Jefferson Avenue Food Mart, located at the corner of Jefferson Avenue and 54th Street South. The city’s gunfire detection system, ShotSpotter, alerted police to shots fired at the location.
Officers from the West Precinct arrived to find King unresponsive in a grassy area next to the store’s parking lot. Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service pronounced him dead at the scene at 3:56 a.m.
Police spokesman Officer Truman Fitzgerald said investigators believe King and McIntosh were involved in a verbal argument that escalated into violence. McIntosh allegedly shot King and fled the scene. A motive for the argument has not been disclosed.
The Birmingham Police Department’s Crime Reduction Team arrested McIntosh within hours of the shooting. He was taken into custody in the 6300 block of 10th Street South in Bessemer, police said.
Authorities are still attempting to locate King’s family. Jefferson County Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates said efforts to identify and contact next of kin have so far been unsuccessful.
Records show King previously listed an address in the 7500 block of 66th Courtway South in Gate City, but investigators do not believe he lived there recently. Police believe he may have been living in the West Brownville community, near where the shooting occurred.
Database searches revealed no listed emergency contacts. Authorities believe King may have had a sister, but her identity and location remain unknown.
Anyone with information about King’s family is asked to contact the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office at 205-930-3603.
The investigation remains ongoing.