GBI: Suwanee man with gun shot, seriously injured by Rockdale deputies

A man who was the subject of multiple 911 calls when he was seen carrying a gun in a Rockdale County neighborhood was shot by sheriff’s deputies Tuesday afternoon and flown to a hospital in critical condition, according to the GBI.

Joshua Valdez, 20, of Suwanee, was flown to Grady Memorial Hospital after the shooting, which happened around 3:45 p.m., GBI spokeswoman Natalie Ammons said in a news release. He remains in critical condition but is considered stable, Ammons said.

According to the initial investigation, a woman who knows Valdez called 911 earlier in the afternoon to report that he was in her home with a gun. When Rockdale sheriff’s deputies arrived, Valdez had already left the house.

As deputies searched the area just south of Panola Mountain State Park, the dispatcher continued to receive 911 calls reporting a man in the neighborhood with a gun.

Valdez was found inside a truck on private property in the 5300 block of Alexanders Lake Road, Ammons said. He was confronted by deputies and got out of the truck still holding a gun, Ammons said, at which point he was shot. No deputies were injured during the incident.

The sheriff’s office requested the GBI conduct an independent investigation into the shooting. It is the 49th shooting the GBI has been asked to investigate this year, 18 more than at the same point in 2021.