10-year-old boy confesses to killing former Louisiana mayor and his daughter

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Louise Thomas

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A 10-year-old boy has allegedly confessed to shooting dead a former mayor and his daughter in Louisiana.

Joe Cornelius, 82, and Keisha Miles, 31, were found dead at the elderly man’s home in Minden on Sunday morning, the City of Minden police said.

They had both suffered multiple gunshot wounds.

On Monday, police announced that a 10-year-old boy had confessed to both killings.

Minden Police Chief Jared McIver confirmed to The Independent that the boy is a relative of Cornelius but did not divulge what relation they are to each other.

The suspect was accompanied by his grandmother when he confessed to the crimes, police said.

The motive for the shootings and what events led up to the deadly encounter remain unclear.

Police said that officers had been called to a report that there were two shooting victims inside the home on Sunday morning.

They arrived on the scene to find the two victims dead and “discovered that a juvenile had committed the crime,” McIver said.

“We received a confession from the 10-year-old and also found two firearms that were hidden which the juvenile confessed to have used,” he said.

Multiple shell casings were found on the floor which were a match to the two firearms.

Another child, aged six, was also at the property at the time of the shootings but was left unharmed, McIver said.

The police chief said that investigators are “99% sure” that the 10-year-old boy had used the firearms.

“Now we have a mound of evidence to piece together in order to understand the reasons behind the attack,” he said. “We need a specialist to come and get into the mind of the child.”

The juvenile, who has not been identified, is being held in custody at a youth center in another state until more interviews are carried out and evidence pieced together.

Cornelius was a well-known member of the community working as a Minden city councilman, before briefly serving as interim mayor of Minden in 2013, reported KTLA.

Known as “Mister Joe,” he also spent two decades working with the local youth through the organization Concerned Citizens of Minden reported KTBS.