By Billy Davis

Two brothers who were gunned down late Thursday night were killed in retaliation for a shooting that occurred minutes earlier, said District Attorney John Champion.

Champion held a press conference late Friday in Batesville after the shooting deaths of Lacardo Moore, 26, and Shundarrus Moore, 17.

No arrests have been made but Champion said authorities “will shake every tree and look under every bush” to put a stop to a string of gang-related violence.

Authorities have said street gangs the Vice Lords and the Gangster Disciples have been in fight after fight at a nightclub.

Batesville police have said the shooting death of Jeremy Wright in January stemmed from the nightclub incident, which itself kicked off a string of shootings into cars and homes over the last three months.

The district attorney described an “ambush shooting” on Everette Street in Batesville that was followed approximately 30 minutes later with the shooting of the Moore brothers at the Westridge Apartments.

Batesville police responded to the Everette Street shooting at approximately 10:01 and to the apartments at 10:30, he said.

Three people were shot on Everette Street and all of them have been treated and released from the hospital.

The brothers were shot in the head while in a Chevy Impala at the apartments, Champion said, answering a question from a TV reporter who asked if it that rumor was true.

At Westridge, smashed shrubs and a broken fence showed where the Impala came to a stop in the rear of the apartment complex.

The Moore brothers were deceased when police officers arrived on the scene, said Champion.

Champion confirmed the back-to-back shootings were gang-related but would not disclose who was affiliated with the battling gangs.

The district attorney also said an AK-47 could have been involved in the Thursday shootings but did not speculate further.

The AK-47 fires a 7.62 mm round. The round that struck and killed Wright was a .223 round, commonly found in AR-15 rifles and Mini-14 rifles among others.

In a preliminary hearing this week, a Batesville police detective testified that an 18-year-old, Marico Fondren, fired the shot that killed Wright.

So far four have been charged with Wright’s murder and two others, both females, have been charged with conspiracy.