'Black While Working': FedEx Driver Wants Justice After 2 White Men Chased, Shot At Him

BROOKHAVEN, MS — A Black FedEx driver and his attorney called for justice this week a month after he said two white men shot at him while chasing him through a Mississippi neighborhood.

Gregory Case, 58, and his son, Brandon Case, 35, were arrested in January for after being accused of chasing and shooting at 24-year-old Demonterrio Gibson. The incident reportedly happened when Gibson, a FedEx driver, was dropping off a package.

At a news conference Thursday, Gibson's attorneys called for a federal hate crimes probe of the attempted shooting, saying it's another example of Black Americans facing danger simply for going about their daily activities.

"This man is fully, gainfully employed by FedEx, doing his job, and still you haul off and try to chase him and cut him off and shoot him multiple times and kill him. It’s sickening to be that hateful and that racist and that full of just malice just because of the color of his skin," said Gibson's attorney, Carlos Moore.

"He was simply Black while working," Moore continued.

In an interview with CNN, Gibson said he was delivering packages around 7 p.m. on Jan. 24 when a white pickup truck began following him.

Gibson told CNN he was driving a Hertz rental van. Moore, Gibson's attorney, told CNN that Gibson was wearing a FedEx jacket, shirt and pants but that the van had no FedEx markings.

Police told WJTV that Gregory and Brandon Case were in the pickup truck and, according to investigators, Brandon Case repeatedly fired shots at the truck. Police told the news station the two men pursued the truck until it reached Interstate 55.

Gregory Case and Brandon Case later turned themselves in to police, the Daily Leader reported.

Gregory Case was charged with conspiracy, while Brandon Case was charged with shooting into a motor vehicle, WJTV reported.

On Thursday, Gibson said he was told to return to work as well as the same route the following day, according to WJTV. Gibson said he worked for a day or two before he started having "bad anxiety attacks."

Jim Masilak, manager of media relations for FedEx, provided a statement in response to questions from The Associated Press on Thursday:

"FedEx takes situations of this nature very seriously, and we are shocked by this criminal act against our team member. ... The safety of our team members is our top priority, and we remain focused on his wellbeing. We will continue to support Mr. Gibson as we cooperate with investigating authorities."

Nobody was injured, but the chase and gunfire have sparked social media complaints of racism in Brookhaven, about 55 miles south of Jackson. The local NAACP chairman has called on city's Black police chief to resign, but the chief says he has no intention to do so.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.