In the summer of 2016, a string of violence that terrorized Tulsa, Oklahoma, culminated in the death of 34-year-old Marlow Barnes. His death on August 22, 2016, was not an isolated incident but the final act in a tragic and violent saga where he was not only a victim but also the alleged perpetrator of multiple homicides.
The events leading to Barnes's death began with a double homicide. Barnes was identified as the suspect in the shooting deaths of Lana Ellsbury and Dustin Grisham.
Following these killings, he reportedly shot a woman and stole her car, which he later set on fire. The violence continued as Barnes allegedly took three individuals hostage, forcing them into a home in North Tulsa. It was within the confines of this house that the terrifying ordeal reached its climax. A struggle ensued over Barnes's firearm, and in the chaos, Marlow Barnes was shot and killed.
Marlo Allen Barnes, born on October 7, 1981, had been a business owner in Tulsa, operating 'Done Right Janitorial'. He was also a skilled mechanic who worked with his father in the family business. His life was marked by connections in both Tulsa and California, where he had attended high school and later lived with his wife and two of his children. He was a father to eight children in total. Friends and family remembered him as a loving man who enjoyed cooking and entertaining, with a talent for soulful rhymes and music.
The investigation into the series of homicides connected four deaths within a 24-hour period in Tulsa and another in a neighboring county, with Marlow Barnes at the center of the violent spree. His death brought an end to the immediate threat, but left a community shaken and grappling with the devastating consequences of the violence that had unfolded. No arrests were made in Barnes's death, as it occurred during the struggle with the individuals he had reportedly taken hostage.
