Crime
Teen Charged with Capital Murder in Fatal Shooting of Birmingham Engineering Student
Authorities have charged an 18-year-old Birmingham man in connection with the weekend shooting death of 22-year-old Xavier “Zay” Colvert, a mechanical engineering student.
Jeremy Dewayne Thomas has been formally charged with capital murder following an investigation that suggests Colvert was set up for a robbery.
Thomas was taken into custody on Thursday and booked into the Jefferson County Jail just before 5 p.m. He is being held without bond.
Birmingham police have not yet disclosed what specific evidence led them to identify Thomas as a suspect.
However, officers with the department’s Crime Reduction Team located him at a residence in west Birmingham.
Following a brief foot pursuit, they were able to apprehend him without further incident.
The fatal shooting occurred late Friday night in the 1400 block of 57th Street in Ensley.
Birmingham police responded to a report of gunfire at approximately 11:45 p.m.
Upon arrival, they found Colvert unresponsive inside his white pickup truck. At least six shell casings were discovered near the truck’s passenger door, indicating multiple shots were fired.
Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service arrived at the scene and pronounced Colvert dead at 12:38 a.m. Saturday.
Colvert was the son of former Jefferson County Constable Robert Colvert III, who was himself a victim of gun violence during a 2018 shootout at his body shop in Woodlawn.
The investigation into the shooting remains ongoing as authorities work to determine further details surrounding the incident.
The Kaufman County Sheriff’s Department is actively investigating a shooting that took place Friday afternoon near Brown Middle School in Forney ISD.
Authorities confirmed that two individuals were shot in a residential neighborhood near Windmill Farms Boulevard, just outside Forney city limits.
In response to the incident, two individuals have been taken into custody in connection with the shooting.
However, law enforcement has not yet released details regarding their identities or possible motives.
Forney ISD officials confirmed the presence of an active crime scene in the vicinity, prompting precautionary security measures across multiple campuses.
Brown Middle School, along with North Forney Middle School, Smith Intermediate, Dewberry Elementary, Blackburn Elementary, and Forney Learning Academy, were placed in “secure” mode as a safety precaution.
Despite the close proximity of the shooting, Forney ISD emphasized that the incident did not occur on school grounds and that all students and staff remained safe throughout the situation.
News footage from the scene showed crime scene tape around a vehicle parked in front of the school.
The district lifted the security measures at approximately 3:30 p.m. and began releasing students to their parents.
Students who walk home were expected to leave at their normal dismissal time of 4:00 p.m., though minor delays were anticipated for bus routes.
Law enforcement officials continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the shooting. No further details have been provided regarding the condition of the victims.