In the early moments of Saturday, September 5, 2026, the quiet of the Kirby Estates Apartments in Robinsonville, Mississippi, was shattered by the sound of gunfire. Just after midnight, a 911 call alerted the Tunica County Sheriff's Office to a person having been shot at the complex located at 2669 Kirby Road. When deputies arrived, they discovered Antonio Marquese Jasper, a 37-year-old Black man, suffering from gunshot wounds. Emergency medical services from Pafford rendered aid at the scene, but Jasper's injuries were too severe, and he was pronounced dead by the Tunica County Coroner.
The investigation into the death of Antonio Marquese Jasper, a resident of Robinsonville, was immediately launched as a homicide by the Tunica County Sheriff's Office. Authorities urged the public for assistance, with Tunica County CrimeStoppers offering a reward of up to $1,000 for any information that would lead to an arrest in the case. In the days and weeks that followed, however, no suspects were publicly identified, and no arrests were announced. The case, like a number of other violent incidents that have plagued the Kirby Estates Apartments, remains an active and ongoing investigation.
The narrative of Antonio Marquese Jasper's life is layered with complexity. A warehouse worker from Itta Bena, his funeral services were held the following Saturday at Leflore Legacy Academy. However, his death was not his only brush with the violent end of a life. In a turn of events that adds a somber depth to his story, public records reveal that Jasper himself had once stood accused and was even convicted of first-degree murder for a killing that took place in December of 2017 at a Waffle House in Robinsonville. That conviction, which had resulted in a life sentence, was later overturned by the Mississippi Court of Appeals in August of 2020. The circumstances surrounding his own shooting death remain under investigation, leaving a case that is, as of now, unresolved.
