A man accused of shooting a woman multiple times and leaving her tied up in a Clayton County home surrendered Tuesday, hours after being named a suspect in her death.
The victim, identified as Carolyn Griffin by Channel 2 Action News, had been fighting for her life after police discovered her bound and wounded July 5 in the bedroom of a home in the 5500 block of Riverdale Road. She died Sunday, according to Clayton County police.
Investigators believe Griffin was in some sort of domestic relationship with Kevin Nicholas Barge, 44, who was identified Tuesday as the suspect. Barge turned himself in at the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office late that night, and he is being held on multiple counts of aggravated assault, false imprisonment and theft by taking, as well as a single count of kidnapping.
He is not facing a murder charge at this time, court and jail records show.
Shortly before 4 a.m. on July 5, officers were called to the home and found Griffin with her hands and feet tied and suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, according to police. A second victim had been able to escape and called for help from a neighbor’s house. The gunman had already left before officers arrived.
Barge, who was publicly identified as a suspect in response to inquiries by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, was considered armed and dangerous prior to his arrest. The police department said it did not alert the public to the shooting until two weeks later “due to detectives conducting a thorough investigation on this incident and want to ensure accurate information was released,” a spokesperson said.
No other details were released Tuesday about Griffin’s death.
Barge is also facing two charges related to possessing a gun as a felon and during the commission of a felony. In 2017, he was convicted in a Clayton County domestic violence case and was sentenced to 12 months with 30 days to serve behind bars on a battery charge.
Anyone with information about the July 5 kidnapping and deadly shooting is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 404-577-TIPS or the Clayton County Police Department at 770-477-3550.
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