DeKalb County police Tuesday identified the man and woman found dead Monday afternoon inside a Panola Road hotel room as Nathaniel Dumas, 34, and 31-year-old Marquita Smith, both of Stone Mountain.

DeKalb police spokeswoman Mekka Parish told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that a maid at the Knights Inn found the bodies around 12:30 p.m. Monday. Both had been shot.

“They do believe they have been dead for some time. We don’t know the length of time,” Parish said.

She said detectives “don’t have a clear motive” for the shootings.

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Retired Army Lt. Col. Raquel Durden, who was named Georgia Woman Veteran of the Year, rode in the Georgia Veterans Day Parade in Midtown Atlanta on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025. In 2018, the Bogart resident cofounded a nonprofit for female veterans and first responders called Humble Warrior Wellness & Yoga. It brings them together for walks, workshops and retreats, helping them form friendships, avoid isolation and practice mindfulness. “God just picked me up,” said Durden, a cancer survivor, “and put me on a different path.” (Ben Gray for the AJC)

Credit: Ben Gray for the Atlanta Journal

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Passengers wait at a Delta check-in counter at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport domestic terminal on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025, the first day of the Federal Aviation Administration cutting flight capacity at airports during the government shutdown. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com