A Tennessee man was arrested in connection with the deaths of a Memphis couple who was found dead in an apartment that caught fire Thursday afternoon.
Aareon Berryman, 18, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, especially aggravated robbery, aggravated arson, possession of marijuana with the intent to manufacture or sell, and possession of ecstasy with the intent to manufacture or sell.
On Thursday afternoon, an Memphis Police Department officer heard multiple gunshots coming from an apartment complex.
Moments later, the officer found Berryman running northbound from an apartment unit engulfed in flames. After a short foot chase, Berryman was caught and taken into custody. Officers asked the suspect if anyone was still in the apartment.
Berryman told police there were two other people inside the burning apartment where he "left them."
The Memphis Fire Department arrived and found the body of Brandon Allen lying on the kitchen floor and the body of Regina Allen in the back bedroom. They were pronounced dead on the scene, officials said.
The couple had celebrated Regina's birthday four days ago.
Berryman admitted to killing both victims, taking their property, and setting their apartment on fire. Police said the suspect had an AR-15, loaded handgun, two jars of marijuana, three plastic bags of marijuana, three prescription pill bottles, and a bottle of charcoal lighter fluid in his possession at the time of his arrest.
Officials said eight to 16 apartment units were completely or partially burned out in the process. The total damage was estimated at $254,000 for buildings and $76,000 in its contents, police said.
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