Authorities have arrested a second suspect accused of being involved in the disappearance of a 4-year-old Haralson County boy earlier this month.
The incident set off Amber Alerts, led to a shooting and culminated with the child’s mother being arrested Feb. 4.
U.S. marshals arrested 40-year-old James Benjamin Hefner in Calhoun County, Alabama, on Thursday. He was charged with aggravated assault and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, according to the Haralson County Sheriff’s Office.
Haralson County deputies asked the U.S. Marshals Service to track down Hefner early in the investigation when they realized he was no longer in their county.
Authorities issued the Amber Alert early Feb. 4 when they received reports that 42-year-old Anitritte Boyd Dobbs and an unidentified man took Dobbs’ 4-year-old son, Brayden Lee Dobbs, from a home near Buchanan, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution previously reported.
Investigators said the child was staying at the home of his father, Lee Dobbs. Anitritte Dobbs and the unidentified man showed up to that home, the mother had a confrontation with her son’s father that escalated and Lee Dobbs was shot, according to previous AJC reporting.
Anitritte Dobbs and her companion then left with Brayden Lee Dobbs in a sedan. Authorities issued at least two statewide Amber Alerts for Brayden before finding him safe with his mother the same afternoon in Douglas County, deputies said at the time.
Authorities canceled the alert and arrested Anitritte Dobbs. She faces the same charges Hefner was booked on Thursday.
Haralson County Sheriff’s Office officials said Hefner was involved in the shooting at Lee Dobbs’ Bethlehem Church Road home in a news release announcing his arrest. Hefner has been booked into the Haralson County Detention Center, according to authorities.
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