19-Year-Old Arrested in Killing of Malcolm Harris, Victim Found in Abandoned House

Nequan Balentine, 19, was arrested and is facing murder charges in the death of Malcolm Harris, 25, whose body was found inside an abandoned house at 3644 Skyline Drive in Jackson after a welfare check, police said. Balentine was initially taken into custody on Feb. 23 on multiple charges and has been extradited to Jackson; he appeared in municipal court on Feb. 27 and was held without bond at the Hinds County Detention Center.

Jackson Police Department Precinct 3 officers responded around 9 p.m. on Feb. 18 to 3644 Skyline Drive for a welfare check regarding a missing person, Tommie Brown, JPD public information officer, said. Officers canvassed the exterior and interior of what appeared to be an abandoned residence and discovered Harris inside, deceased from a gunshot wound. The Hinds County coroner confirmed the cause of death was a single gunshot wound.

Police said Harris was 25 and died three days before what would have been his 26th birthday; his date of birth is Feb. 21, 2000. Jackson authorities also reported that Harris’ vehicle was stolen after his death. The crime scene at the Skyline Drive house was secured with police tape while investigators processed the interior and exterior of the vacant property.

Balentine’s Feb. 23 arrest was tied to an armed robbery of a Dollar General and other charges reported across law enforcement filings. Reports list additional counts including auto theft and aggravated assault on law enforcement alongside the murder charge; booking records list Balentine’s age as 19. Officials said Balentine was being extradited to Jackson from Panola County and that he appeared in municipal court Feb. 27 with no bond set. The suspect’s name has appeared in some records with an alternate spelling of Baletine; arrest and booking paperwork will be required to confirm the legal spelling and the full list of charges.

Community members identified the victim as Malcolm Harris, who worked at a Chick-fil-A in Madison. The restaurant described him as a “kind and joyful spirit.” Harris was an active member of Greater Bethlehem Temple Church in Jackson, where church member Ervin Ricks said, “To know him is to know somebody that is warm and loving and funny and very caring.” Ricks added, “Malcolm, you're gone too soon, and we're going to miss you, and you left a tremendous impact, and we just only hope that we impacted him in some way as well.” Church members noted Harris led the choir days before his death and had moved from Texas to Jackson to care for his mother.

Investigators continue to treat the case as active and ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Jackson Police Department at 601-960-1234 or Crime Stoppers at 601-355-TIPS (8477). Open questions remain about the county where the Dollar General armed robbery allegedly occurred — records variously reference Panola County and Quitman County — and whether Harris’ stolen vehicle has been recovered; those details await confirmation from arrest records, extradition paperwork, and the Hinds County coroner’s report.