Not long after the seven men charged in the February shooting death of 15-year-old Nicholas Jackson were taken into custody, authorities soon figured out that it was a robbery gone awry.
Little else about the Norcross teen's slaying made sense.
The suspects in the killing gave conflicting accounts about why they were in the area near the home in the 300 block of Autry Street. Authorities found $20,000 in cash in the men's van minutes after the shooting, but Jackson's father said only $600 was missing from the house. No one in the Jackson family had known legal troubles. Their house was tucked away on a quiet, tree-canopied street that had no history of violent crime.
But Monday, federal authorities presented evidence that finally reveals a possible motive for the robbery: Two of the men charged in the crime, the prosecutors said, told the Gwinnett County District Attorney's Office that they believed Jackson's father had a cache of drugs and cash in the house.
Nicholas Jackson Sr., 38, was one of 14 men indicted July 25 as part of a Mexican narcotics ring from which federal agents said they seized about $1.6 million worth of cocaine, crystal methamphetamine and marijuana. The indictment was unsealed Wednesday.
The U.S. Attorney's Office alleges that Jackson was among several local couriers who facilitated the distribution of the drugs.
The seven men charged in the killing of Jackson's son were not a part of the federal investigation, Assistant U.S. Attorney Skye Davis said.
Neighbors on Autry Street said Monday afternoon that they were surprised to hear about the latest allegations.
Dorine Perry, a teacher at nearby Hopewell Christian Academy, said the elder Jackson was an attentive and engaged father, someone who regularly attended — and even catered — some of the academy's school's events. He would bring lasagna, green bean casserole and sweet tea and then make small talk with the other parents.
"He was a very nice gentleman," said Perry, who was watching after a handful of kids at a park about a block away from the Jacksons' home. "He did a lot of things for the school."
Others neighbors said the Jacksons regularly had lots of guests at their home, but they didn't suspect anything nefarious until the shooting. In a peaceful neighborhood far from major streets and with only a handful of houses — most of them new, large and valued at more than $300,000 — the residents figured the alleged killers didn't come there by accident.
The seven men charged in the killing initially told differing stories of how they ended up in Norcross on Feb. 2, when the Norcross High student was shot in the heart during the apparent robbery.
One told Norcross police the men were heading to the Mall of Georgia. Another said they got lost looking for Ga. 400, while two others said they had driven a rental van to Gwinnett County to pick up the rest of the group, who had encountered car trouble.
Norcross police later found $20,000 stuffed in a black bag and hidden in a compartment of the suspects' Dodge Caravan. Four semiautomatic handguns, two ski masks, two pairs of latex gloves and a roll of duct tape also were discovered when officers stopped the minivan about a third of a mile from the Jacksons' home only minutes after the shooting.
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