After the shots rang, 21-year-old Adaren Carter could be seen fleeing with a backpack stolen from a dead DeKalb County teen.
Detective V.R. Van Hees said DeKalb Police know this because a neighbor snapped photos of Carter and his cousin escaping the scene in an SUV on the afternoon of May 7. Tyler LaFonte Bingham of Lithonia was found dead, shot multiple times, around 5 p.m. on Cody Court, off Wellborn Road.
Carter, fresh-faced and sleepy in a jailhouse jumpsuit, was in court Monday for a preliminary hearing on charges of armed robbery and felony murder.
Van Hees testified that Jacob Maddox, Carter’s 16-year-old cousin, told police what Carter did.
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Maddox, who is also charged with murder, said he saw Carter chase Bingham behind a home and then emerge with the backpack after the sound of gunshots.
“I shot him, bro,” Carter allegedly said to his cousin. “Get me out of here.”
Carter declined an interview with police because his attorney wasn’t present.
Van Hees said he understood from the investigation that Carter and Bingham knew each other “from the neighborhood” and had previous conflicts. The detective wasn’t aware of the cause of the troubles between the young men.
Carter’s attorney, Olga Izmaylova, asked for his charges to be dismissed, saying it appeared the state was relying too heavily on the co-defendant’s statement.
But Judge Claire Jason found enough probable cause for the state to continue with its case.
Two women in court on behalf of Carter declined to comment after the hearing.
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