American gunmaker, Walter Earnest Birdsong Jr, has been shot dead together with his wife, in their home in Mississippi, United States, following an inheritance dispute.
The victims, Birdsong Jr., 62, and his wife, Amanda Lynn Birdsong, 43, were killed inside their home in Florence, Mississippi, on Friday last week.
Police identified the attacker as a relative, 56-year-old Kurt Birdsong, who later took his own life after a standoff with law enforcement.
The dispute centred on a 14-acre parcel of land that Kurt Birdsong claimed had been verbally promised to him by his late father before his death in 2015.
Walter Earnest Birdsong Jr challenged this claim and took the matter to court.
A court ruling in 2019 dismissed Kurt’s claim due to a lack of written documentation.
Neighbours reportedly said tensions within the family escalated over the years, with Kurt allegedly becoming increasingly unstable following the court decision.
Amanda Birdsong was said to have often tried to mediate between both sides of the feud.
On the day of the incident, Kurt reportedly entered the residence armed with multiple firearms and opened fire on the couple.
Law enforcement officers arrived within minutes after a 911 call and engaged in a three-hour standoff after Kurt barricaded himself inside a bathroom.
Given Walter Birdsong’s connection to a firearms manufacturing and coating business, authorities also deployed a bomb squad as a precaution while securing the scene.
When tactical teams eventually forced entry, Kurt was found dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The Birdsong family has since issued a statement describing the incident as devastating, saying the land dispute “ultimately tore the family apart.”
Investigators are now reviewing Kurt Birdsong’s phone records to determine whether he left behind any written explanation or manifesto before the attack.
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