Woman hunts down ex-boyfriend, but roommate driving his car ends up dead, TN cops say

A woman was on the hunt for her ex-boyfriend, but his roommate borrowing his car wound up dead in a case of “mistaken identity,” Tennessee authorities said.

Now, two people face charges in the shooting death of George Harris, according to police.

Kiauna Newsom, 29, was at a store on March 2 when she got into an argument with her ex about her new boyfriend, the Memphis Police Department reported in an arrest affidavit.

The ex told police he went home after the argument, then his roommate asked to borrow his car, a Chevy Malibu, according to court records.

Meanwhile, Newsom enlisted the help of her current boyfriend, 32-year-old Justin Howard, to track down her ex, police said.

The pair eventually found the Malibu on the road and began following it, surveillance footage showed. With Newsom driving, Howard pulled out a rifle and fired shots at the car, police said.

Officers reported they found Harris unresponsive in the driver’s seat with multiple gunshot wounds, and he was pronounced dead at a hospital.

After Harris’ roommate got a call about the shooting, he told police he “believed that he was the intended target and Harris was the victim of mistaken identity,” police wrote in the affidavit.

When investigators went to Newsom’s home, they said they found a vehicle in the driveway that appeared on camera following the Chevy Malibu the day of the shooting.

Newsom and Howard were both charged with first-degree murder, records show.

McClatchy News reached out to Newsom’s attorney on March 5 and didn’t immediately receive a response. Howard’s attorney information is not yet available in Shelby County records.

This story was originally published March 5, 2024 at 12:32 PM with the headline "Woman hunts down ex-boyfriend, but roommate driving his car ends up dead, TN cops say."