NATCHEZ — Police have arrested two people in connection to a shootout that killed one person early Wednesday morning in the parking lot of a local convenience store.

The first known homicide within city limits this year reportedly occurred approximately 1 a.m. at Zipy gas station, located on Old Washington Road, and involved four shooters, Natchez Police Chief Walter Armstrong said.

The two men arrested Wednesday are Keith Burns, 24, and Gregory Hammett, 25, both face charges of tampering with evidence. Armstrong said the two men were friends of the victim, 27-year-old Rodrique Dshaun Watson. An attacker allegedly fired at Watson and struck him multiple times.

“This is just horrible,” Adams County Coroner James Lee said. “When someone is shot that many times, it shows an intent to kill.

“I don’t know what else is going on, but these are not just random killings in the sense that these individuals have an intent to kill … and that frightens me.”

Armstrong said the three individuals all became involved in the shooting and the tampering charges arose when investigators determined that Burns and Hammett took Watson’s weapon away from the scene after the fact.

The fourth individual police believe was involved in the shooting suffered at least one gunshot wound during the exchange and was eventually transported to University of Mississippi Medical Center for treatment.

Police had not charged anyone for Watson’s killing as of Wednesday evening.

Investigators believe Watson fired back at his attacker, Armstrong said, but they do not believe his return fire hit any target.

Through the execution of multiple search warrants, police recovered four weapons, including a handgun investigators believe to be the murder weapon and an AR-15 rifle that Burns allegedly used against the attacker.

Armstrong said everyone involved in the shooting appeared to know each other and the attack resulted from some sort of dispute, though he said the exact motive is unclear. Armstrong also said he is unsure if the incident involved any gang-related activity.

“We don’t know that, but it was quite apparent that there was some bad blood between the parties involved,” Armstrong said.

No innocent bystanders suffered any injuries during the shootout, Armstrong said.

The chief commended his officers for working the case relentlessly since the shooting occurred and said the department would continue its investigation.

Armstrong said at least one more arrest is expected in the near future.