A man was shot in the arm Monday after police said he confronted officers with a semi-automatic rifle in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward neighborhood.
The officers opened fire on the man when he stepped out of a stolen white SUV holding the weapon, according to Atlanta police spokesman Sgt. John Chafee. The vehicle was believed to be the source of gunfire in the area, Chafee said.
Officers heard the shots being fired about 5:50 p.m. in the area of Parkway Drive and Wabash Avenue. They immediately responded and began searching for the source, Chafee said.
“Officers quickly located the suspect vehicle, a white SUV, as it was leaving the area and began following it,” he said in a statement. “The suspect vehicle came to a stop on Highland Avenue near Parkway Drive, where the four occupants quickly exited and were confronted by police.”
The man allegedly holding the rifle was the only person injured in the resulting gunfire, according to Chafee. He was identified by the GBI as Reginald Carter, 30, of Conley.
Carter and two other suspects, 29-year-old Demonte Thomas of Jonesboro and 24-year-old Artez Carter of Atlanta, were taken into custody after a brief chase. The fourth suspect ran away and had not been located as of Tuesday, the GBI said in a news release.
The GBI is investigating an OIS between the Atlanta Police Department and a group of individuals following a shots fired call yesterday evening. Three subjects were arrested. A fourth subject was not apprehended. https://t.co/yi17YfCNPp pic.twitter.com/dyyuJg2a9T
— GA Bureau of Investigation (@GBI_GA) May 26, 2020
Carter was treated at a hospital before being released to the custody of the Atlanta Police Department. He was being held Tuesday in the Fulton County Jail on a charge of theft by receiving stolen property, as well as numerous other charges unrelated to the Monday evening incident.
Investigators recovered a rifle at the scene and determined the SUV was reported stolen, police said. The GBI has since taken over the investigation, which is standard department protocol in the case of officer-involved shootings.
This is the 44th OIS that the GBI has been requested to investigate in 2020. Media - APD will handle the release of initial info. Our public affairs office will issue a press release once details are in. https://t.co/4kI3Trp5hj
— Nelly Miles (@NMilesGBIPIO) May 25, 2020
It was the second such shooting the GBI was requested to investigate in metro Atlanta over the holiday weekend. On Sunday, a 62-year-old man was shot by police outside a DeKalb County convenience store, officials said.
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The two incidents are the 43rd and 44th the GBI has investigated this year, according to Miles.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution also tracks officer-involved shootings that don't involve the GBI, and those numbers sometimes differ from the GBI's tally.
— Please return to AJC.com for updates.
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