The night of April 23, a group of bounty hunters and bail bondsmen in Clarksville, Tenn., tracked a black Nissan sedan to a Walmart parking lot on the edge of town.

A wanted man was riding in the car, or so they thought, according to police. So when the timing was right, the seven of them converged on the vehicle and tried to snatch up their suspect.

What happened next isn’t quite clear, but a struggle ensued and at least one of the bounty hunters opened fire, police said.

The Nissan screeched out of the parking lot, and the bounty hunters gave chase in two cars of their own. Over the next seven miles, they continued to fire at the sedan and at one point rammed it from behind, the Associated Press reported.

The pursuit ended when the driver pulled over, injured by the gunfire. A passenger, Jalen Johnson, had been shot as well. A 24-year-old father of three, Johnson died at a hospital shortly after, according to the Associated Press. Two other passengers made it out unharmed.

The bounty hunters had the wrong people.

Nobody in the car was suspected of a crime, police said. Nobody had outstanding warrants. Nobody was carrying a weapon.

On Wednesday, a grand jury in Montgomery County indicted all seven bounty hunters and bondsmen on counts of first-degree felony murder, attempted second-degree murder, kidnapping and several other charges.

Washington Post