UPDATE
Henry County police continued their investigation Thursday into an overnight quadruple shooting as owners of the home where the gruesome crime took place cut short a trip to Florida to rush home.
Police have not yet released the identity of the people in the house nor their relationship to each other or a possible motive. They said the people in the house knew each other. The initial call came in as a home invasion around 2 a.m. but officials said later it’s unclear whether it was a home invasion or domestic dispute.
Around noon officials began removing the bodies from the house.
The house sits on a bucolic rural stretch of road lined with pecan trees and signs reminding drivers of horse riders in the area. A spotted brown and white horse grazed in the fenced front drive of the home on Moccasin Gap Road in the McDonough area. Nearby, a cooler sat next to the smoldering remnants of a fire that apparently the occupants of the house had gathered around the night before. Police said the shooting happened inside the house in the living room and kitchen.
People gathered at the scene waiting for word to see if a loved one was among the three people killed in the shooting. A fourth person, a woman, is in critical condition at an area hospital.
Fred Rainer was among the group of locals and media awaiting more news. Rainer arrived at the scene soon after getting a frantic 7 a.m. call form the homeowners, members from his church he has known for 15 years. Rainer said the owners asked him to go to the scene to check on family members. The owner’s 20-year-old granddaughter is believed to be the fourth shooting victim, he said.
“It’s very much a sleepy little town with salt of the earth people,“ Rainer said. “It’s grown now, the city has come to meet us more or less.”
ORIGINAL REPORT
Three people were killed and one person was critically injured Thursday in a quadruple shooting in Henry County, police said.
Authorities got a call about the deadly shooting at a home on Moccasin Gap Road in McDonough about 2 a.m.
“It went out as a home invasion and ended up being some type of shooting,” Henry police Capt. Joey Smith said.
Police found the victims in the living room and kitchen of the home, he said.
Three people died on the scene. The fourth person was flown to an area hospital in critical condition.
Relatives arrived on scene just after 7:30 a.m. One woman fell to her knees and screamed the names of the three people killed, according to Channel 2 Action News. Authorities have not officially identified the victims, but said they all knew each other.
“It appears that they were all up at the time or together,” Smith said.
Police spoke with a woman who lives at the home, and contacted witnesses inside the residence as well as neighbors.
No arrests had been made by 9 a.m.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Henry police.
“We’re trying to be as cautious as we can with information,” Smith said.
Staff writer Lauren Foreman contributed to this article.
— Please return to AJC.com for updates.
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