NATCHEZ — Police are searching for a Natchez man they believe shot and killed another man in front of a Beaumont Street house Thursday morning.

Natchez Police Detective Jerry Ford said a warrant was issued Thursday evening for McKinley Douglas Brady, a 34-year-old black man, who is approximately 5-feet, 8-inches tall and weighs approximately 160 pounds.

Brady, also known as “Doom,” allegedly shot Kendrick Tolbert, 28, 62 Providence Road, following an argument at approximately 10 a.m.

Ford said witnesses reported Tolbert and Brady, who were acquaintances, were arguing inside the house at 62 Beaumont St. over a cigarette when Tolbert ran outside in front of the house. Brady reportedly followed Tolbert and shot him once.

Adams County Coroner James Lee said preliminary examination indicates Tolbert was shot from behind in the right shoulder, and the bullet exited through his chest.

Police have ruled the shooting a homicide, Police Chief Danny White said.

Witnesses reported Tolbert was holding a 3-year-old child in his arms when he was shot, but Ford said police have not been able to confirm that. The child was uninjured in the shooting.

A murder weapon has not been recovered, Ford said, but police believe a handgun was used in the shooting.

White, along with approximately 10 other law enforcement officers, surrounded two houses on Woodlawn Avenue shortly before 11 a.m. Thursday near where the shooting happened supposedly searching for Brady. White knocked on the doors while the officers, some with guns drawn, surrounded the houses. No one answered the doors, and police did not enter either house.

Tolbert’s body laid covered by a blanket in the yard of the house where he was apparently shot until Lee arrived on the scene at approximately 11 a.m. Tolbert’s body was then loaded into the coroner’s van.

Authorities from the NPD and Adams County Sheriff’s Office worked the scene, where approximately 40 onlookers had gathered by approximately 11 a.m.

Tolbert’s death marks the first homicide of the year, a crime Lee called a senseless tragedy.

“I thought we had pretty much stopped these kinds of tragedies in Natchez,” he said. “I hate that we’re starting the year off with something like this.”

Brady was the victim of a shooting in October 2012 at the intersection of Beaumont and Bishop streets, where he was shot multiple times.

Brady was also charged in October 2007 for allegedly shooting a man. He was charged with possession of crack cocaine in July 2013  and possession of a controlled illegal substance in July 2012.

Anyone with information about Thursday’s homicide should call Crime Stoppers at 601-442-5000. Crime Stoppers offers a reward of up to $1,000 for tips leading to the arrest and conviction of a suspect.