Social media reactions are pouring in a few folks are remembering the death of a 25-year-old nurse who went to the authorities and said he was being stalked by his ex-boyfriend, who was a former cop.

Police in Jackson, Mississippi, are investigating the death of Carlos Collins, who was found dead in his apartment on Tuesday.

A close source familiar with the investigation told People that Jackson Police had responded to a violent scene at the Tapestry Northridge Apartments, where they discovered Collins, who was shot multiple times and hit with a “blunt object.” According to Jackson’s Clarion Ledger, Collins was a registered nurse from Yazoo City, Mississippi, about 44 miles from Jackson.

On Wednesday, Jackson Police pursued 33-year-old Marcus Johnson, a former Jackson officer and suspect in Collins’ death, in a car chase that ended 126 miles away in Monroe, Louisiana. He was arrested on charges of murder and shooting in an occupied dwelling in connection to the killing, public information officer Tommie Brown told media outlets.

Collins’ sister, Alisha Hudson, told People that her brother and Johnson had been dating for about a year, which ended in late 2023. He believed his ex-boyfriend had been stalking him and visited the Jackson Police Department multiple times to report it. Hudson mentioned that Collins had taken legal action by filing a restraining order against Johnson. However, despite his past as a former Jackson Police officer, his behavior persisted.

“In my brother’s last months, he was living in hell dealing with Marcus,” Hudson told People. “The Jackson Police Department mishandled his case and downplayed the situation. They didn’t care to protect my brother. They protected Marcus.”

After their breakup, Hudson said Collins found tracking devices on his car, a friend’s, and a camera he suspected his ex installed nearby. Once, her brother woke to find Johnson watching him sleep. Collins had taken safety precautions, requested to change his locks multiple times and sought self-defense training from a family pastor.

Hudson remembered when she and Collins were at a local bar celebrating a family member’s birthday and noticed Johnson seated behind them. She said he became increasingly fixated on her brother over time.

“It was obsession, fatal attraction,” Hudson said of Johnson. “He didn’t want anyone else to be with my brother.”

Collins’ mother, Ashla Hudson, told WJTV, “I would rather him shoot me. Beat me with an axe. Not my baby. Not him.”

Johnson was employed with the Jackson Police Department for eight months before his termination in 2013. 

“He was separated from JPD pending disciplinary actions leading up to his immediate termination,” the department said in a news release obtained by WAPT.

The Clarion Ledger reported more details about Johnson’s past, including a 2014 incident when he was arrested and charged with impersonating a police officer at the Palisades Apartments near Jackson State University.

According to the Clarion Ledger, Johnson allegedly issued a fraudulent citation to a female student. Subsequently, he attempted to solicit a “hook up” from her in exchange for voiding the ticket, as stated in a police report. Additionally, officers discovered that Johnson had a stolen JPD radio and an outdated ticket book. He also used the badge number of a current officer during the incident.

Johnson faced charges related to the 2014 incident, including false pretense, grand larceny and two counts of impersonating an officer.

The 33-year-old is detained at the Richland Parish Detention Center in Rayville, Louisiana, awaiting extradition to Jackson.

Social media is remembering Collins while putting a spotlight on stalking cases reported by men.

Mississippi