DeKalb Sheriff Jeff Mann announced Thursday his deputies, police and federal deputies had bagged five men and one woman wanted in three different killings during their annual roundup of fugitives and other folks wanted for arrest.
Sheriff deputies had 3,500 individuals on their list, many charged with serious crimes of murder, rape, aggravated assault, as well as misdemeanors, probation violators and bench warrants issued by judge for such things as missing court.
Law officers found 198 of them so far in the seven-day operation that ends Friday, Mann said.
Mann noted the 64 people arrested on misdemeanors were recent cases but some of the felonies had been sought for 13 months. Once “Operation Safe DeKalb” put them in the spotlight, law officers were able to find them, Mann said. Some murder suspects were arrested this month before the operation’s official start.
Asked if many of the people arrested had bonded out jail, Mann said: “Some have, some haven’t.”
DeKalb Police Chief J.W. Conroy noted many of the cases belonged to his department and that the sheriff’s office, which searches for them year round but does a high-profile round up each year.
“We look for them in the initial stages of the investigation and then we put them on the computer, Conley said. “Our job is investigation, their job is fugitive. It’s sort of their area of expertise.”
At least one of the accused murderers on the list was picked up two days after the Dec. 12 killing. Michael Bargainer is charged with murdering D'Monte Brown, 25, whose father said died while taking a shortcut to work through some woods.
But others for older alleged crimes, like a man was arrested in the double-killing in a a south DeKalb motel last September. Derrick Hepson was arrested charged with the murder of Nathaniel Dumas and Marquita Smith. Hepson was arrested Jan. 6.
Or Isaiah Leegrand, who was arrested Jan. 18, on murder and street gang charges for the shooting death of Rico Steward last May.
Three people were arrested on murder charges in the killing of Verdell Bee, 29, and Princess Stanford, 24 last November. The two were found dead inside a car with multiple gunshots wounds outside the Soluna Park Apartments.
Aishadia Alexandria Armstrong, Martavis Dequan Mathis, ,both arrested Jan. 20, and Devon Malik Brown, arrested Tuesday, are in the DeKalb County jail charged with the couple’s murder along with Octavius Kajuan Cox who was arrested. January 15.
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