JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – A man wanted on murder charges in connection to a Jackson missing persons case several months ago has pleaded guilty to federal charges.
An arrest warrant was issued for Tonali Moore on Saturday for the murder of Larry Reynolds.
Jackson police launched an investigation into Reynold’s disappearance on Friday. The following day, two women were arrested and charged with being accessories after the fact and a warrant was issued for Moore’s arrest.
The news comes months after Moore pleaded guilty to violating Title 18 of the U.S. Code, which prohibits convicted felons from shipping, transporting, possessing or receiving firearms or ammunition.
U.S. District Judge Christy Johnson originally scheduled the sentencing for June 5, but postponed it on May 20 without announcing a new date.
Judge Christy Johnson postponed sentencing in Tonali-Moore’s federal case (U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi).
Jackson police say officers and U.S. Marshals are working the search. “We have not had any contact with Tonali Moore at this time,” Deputy Chief Sekelna Banks said. “The investigation to locate him is still in the early stages. That’s all we know at this time.”
Banks couldn’t provide details about the crime and said authorities don’t yet know a motive, but she told WLBT that Moore should be considered armed and dangerous.
A quick search of court records reveals Moore has a lengthy criminal history that includes convictions for manslaughter, armed robbery, resisting arrest and simple assault on a police officer.
Moore pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 1996 and was sentenced to 20 years in prison, 20 years suspended and five years of probation.
According to the Clarion Ledger, Moore, who was 19 at the time, shot and killed a man at a rooming house on the corner of Page and Woodlawn streets.
Police “found six to eight bullet holes in the front door and a bullet hole in the kitchen refrigerator. The kitchen floor and door were covered in blood and two shell casings were found near the front door steps,” the Ledger reported.
Records show that Moore was on probation for that charge, but was indicted again in 1998, this time on a conspiracy charge. The case was remanded to his file.
In 1999, Moore was indicted on three additional criminal counts, including one count of conspiracy and one count of possession of a controlled substance. Records show Moore received a two-year prison sentence on the conspiracy count and a second, unspecified count, and was also remanded for another possession charge.
Nearly a decade later, in 2008, Moore was in trouble again, this time arrested for simple assault on a police officer.
In 2009, the state decided not to pursue the case, but Moore was charged with a separate offense of resisting arrest.
In 2021, specially appointed Judge Jess Dickinson dismissed the case and those against more than 100 defendants, citing “the prolonged openness of the cases and the State’s difficulties in finding witnesses and sufficient evidence.”
Moore also made headlines during his time as manager of the Upper Level Bar & Grill, a Northwest Jackson establishment owned by Moore’s mother, and where he had several run-ins with police under former Mayor Frank Melton.
In 2006, Moore was arrested after claiming he had been assaulted by officers under Melton’s command. Then, in 2008, then-JPD Chief Malcolm McMillin told the Clarion-Ledger that he wanted to close the club after three shootings had occurred at the location.
That same year, Chancery Court Judge DeWayne Thomas issued a temporary restraining order and ordered the facility closed, finding it a public nuisance.
Details of Moore’s federal case are not publicly available in the federal court’s online database. Jackson Jambalaya said DEA agents found cocaine, a loaded handgun, a hunting rifle and “various calibers of ammunition” during a search of his home in 2021.
According to court records, the case is linked to two other federal cases, one involving former Hinds County Sheriff Marchand Crisler and former Jackson Police Officer Torrence Mayfield.
Crisler, who also served two terms on the Jackson City Council, pleaded not guilty last spring to charges of bribery and selling ammunition to a convicted felon.
A pretrial conference in Crisler’s case is scheduled for June 10.
Mayfield, who was at the center of the “3 On Your Side” investigation, was indicted in October 2021 on a charge of selling a gun to a convicted felon.
If Moore is charged under two of the code’s provisions, he could face up to 10 years in prison. If Moore is charged under the other code, he could face 15 years to life in prison, up to five years’ probation, and a $250,000 fine.
He was released on $10,000 bail on Feb. 26, according to available records.
Want more WLBT news delivered to your email? Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.
Notice a spelling or grammar error in the article? Click here to report it and include the article headline in your email.
Copyright 2024 WLBT. All rights reserved.
