A second suspect has been arrested in the case of a man found dead in Inman Park near the Atlanta Beltline last month, Atlanta police announced Wednesday.
Thomas Arnold was found shot to death on the morning of Feb. 26 in the area of Elizabeth Street and Bernina Avenue, not far from his Poncey-Highland home. Over the weekend, 28-year-old Brandon Williams was arrested in Hapeville on charges related to Arnold’s killing.
Atlanta police Deputy Chief Charles Hampton Jr. told reporters at a news conference Wednesday that his department has also arrested Demetrice Ross, 26, who was taken into custody at a home in Morrow.
Both suspects face charges of felony murder.
Credit: Fulton County Sheriff's Office
Credit: Fulton County Sheriff's Office
Williams and Ross are two of three people seen in surveillance footage near the area where Arnold was found just moments before the shooting. At the time, police called them persons of interest.
“You may be able to run but you will not be able to hide, and we will do everything in our power to bring anyone to justice for committing any crime within our jurisdiction,” Hampton said. “We are serious about this.”
Investigators continue to look for the third man seen in the footage. They did not say if they have already identified that person.
“They know who they are,” Hampton said.
After releasing the surveillance footage, Hampton said they were “flooded with information that helped bring this case to where we are today.”
Williams had just been released from state prison Jan. 29 after serving three years of a 10-year sentence for burglary in Clayton County, according to prison records. He was to serve the remaining seven years of his sentence on probation, county records show.
Arnold was an active member of the Inman Park community and would frequently walk around the neighborhood where he lived for the past 20 years, family and friends said. His family called his death a “profound loss” and asked the public to help the investigation in any way possible.
The update in Arnold’s case was one of several Atlanta police provided Wednesday, including a quadruple shooting outside a northwest Atlanta nightclub, a fatal drive-by shooting of a grandmother at a Lakewood Heights gas station and a deadly shooting near the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park.
Police are asking anyone with information to call the homicide unit at 404-546-4235. Tipsters can remain anonymous by contacting Crime Stoppers at 404-577-8477, texting information to 274637 or by visiting the Crime Stoppers website.
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