A 16-year-old girl turned herself in to police Sunday in connection with an alleged gang-related robbery that turned deadly outside a northwest Atlanta home in late January, according to a warrant obtained Tuesday.
The girl is one of three teenagers arrested within the past two weeks on murder charges in the death of a 29-year-old man found shot multiple times inside a vehicle. Police said the teen was taken to the Metro Regional Youth Detention Center for processing.
Israel Byrd, 18, surrendered to police Thursday, while a 17-year-old boy was taken into custody a week ago. They were both booked into the Fulton County Jail.
On Jan. 25, Atlanta police got a call at around 1 p.m. about a person being shot in the 1200 block of Gun Club Road. The area is east of Hollywood Road and west of Proctor Creek in the Almond Park area.
When officers arrived, they found the man inside the vehicle. He was declared dead at the scene and identified in the warrant as Alexander Smart.
According to Byrd’s warrant, Smart was killed with a 9mm pistol to increase the suspect’s status with the criminal street gang 4Way, with which he was either employed or associated. The warrant also stated that Byrd was armed when he allegedly robbed Smart’s iPhone “with another gang member and associate of the gang.”
Police said the victim was lured through “deceitful measures under a false pretense to the location.”
“The gang members conspired to rob and murder the victim, with this said, after the homicide, the accused had communication with fellow gang members regarding the murder, which will maintain and or increase the status within the criminal street gang,” the warrant stated.
Police said the three suspects were identified through self-identification and investigative efforts.
The three teens are each facing charges of murder, armed robbery, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, police said. Byrd also faces several gang charges, according to online records, while the other two suspects are also charged with possession of a firearm under the age of 18, according to authorities.
— Please return to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for updates.
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