The Selma Police Department continues to investigate two separate shootings that took the lives of two teenagers this past weekend.

Jaequan Simmons, 19, was shot and killed Friday night on Kayser Street, and Quadriquis Devonte Bell, 17, was shot and killed early Sunday morning near Martin Luther King Street and First Avenue.

“We’re still investigating it,” said interim Selma Police Chief Johnny King. “We’re just following up on leads. We’re still getting statements as we speak.”

King said he does not believe the two homicides are related, but it is still early in the investigation.

Officers responded to the 1900 block of Kayser Street around 9:17 p.m. Friday. When they arrived they found Simmons inside a car with a gunshot wound. Simmons was pronounced dead on the scene.

According to a press release from King that was sent out Sunday, an officer already at Vaughan Regional Medical Center for an unrelated incident was flagged down by someone at the emergency room about a gunshot victim. Bell was transferred there by private vehicle.

He was treated at the hospital but was pronounced dead around 4:50 a.m. King said investigators believe the shooting happened near Martin Luther King Street and First Avenue.

The two homicides bring the city’s murder count for 2016 up to 16, which is up from 11 last year.

Selma Mayor Darrio Melton held a press conference outside of city hall Monday to address the two fatal shootings and the recent rise of violence in the city, which includes an intentionally set fire that killed a mother and her daughter.

“Violence in our community is at an epidemic high, and so we are putting measures in place to make sure that we address the violence throughout our city,” Melton said.

Melton unveiled “Operation Christmas Presence,” which is a plan to increase the presence of law enforcement in “hot spots” throughout the city.

Melton is also working with District Attorney Michael Jackson and the police department to offer a cash reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of people responsible for homicides.

“We’re in the business of winning our city back, and we’re asking all constituents and our citizens to work with us to help us police our community to make sure that our young kids can live in the community whereby they don’t have to fear violence,” Melton said. “We take this very, very deeply in regards to the need to make sure we have a presence through our community and we get these violent offenders off the street.”

Jackson said he is planning a series of sweeps with a gang task force to target areas with gang activity.

“We’re going to start putting a lot of pressure on them where they ain’t going to be able to take a step out of their house without seeing a police officer or somebody,” Jackson said.

No arrests have been made in either case.

Jackson said he hopes people that know what happened will speak up to get the people responsible off the streets.

“We’re asking all citizens to help us get these gunslingers off the streets,” Jackson said. “A lot of this stuff y’all posting on Facebook and all, pick up the phone and call the police department or call my office.”

Anyone with information about either homicide or any other crime can call the police department’s Secret Witness Line at 874-2190 or Crime Stoppers at 1-866-442-7463.