A 16-year-old boy died when three people were shot after an apparent argument in southwest Atlanta on Saturday night, according to reports.
The slain teenager was identified by the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office as Joshua Adetunji. A 14-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man were expected to survive their injuries after the triple shooting, which was reported around 9:30 a.m. across the street from the Atlanta Fair.
The ordeal took place over three separate locations, Atlanta police Lt. Ralph Woolfolk told Channel 2 Action News from the scene. The call initially came in from a nearby BP gas station on Central Avenue, the news station reported. Police said it started with a fight, and then someone started shooting.
Investigators said it’s too early to tell if others were involved in the shooting.
“I think we’re off to a decent start with this investigation,” Woolfolk, who commands the homicide unit, told Channel 2. “We recovered some ballistic evidence on scene. We’ve also begun to assess video surveillance in reference to the incident, so we will be working through the night to determine all the persons involved in this incident.”
No arrests have been made. Police have not confirmed if the shooting was connected to the fair, which opened this weekend and is being held across the street from Center Parc Credit Union Stadium.
Cellphone video shared on social media appears to show a large fight on the fairgrounds. Another video, shared on Twitter by ATLUncensored, shows a large police presence at the BP station immediately after the shooting.
Creekside High School, which Adetunji attended, shared a letter with parents announcing the freshman’s death. School administrators offered advice to parents whose children might be grieving the death of their classmate.
“When events such as this happen, youth react in different ways. You may see your child feeling sad, upset, angry, shocked or numb,” Creekside administrators said in the letter. “For some students, a death of someone they know may remind them of some other loss in their lives. For others, this may be their first encounter with death.”
The letter recommended parents be good listeners, spend extra time with their children and encourage kids to be open about their feelings.
The school is offering multiple methods of support for students, including an in-person CARE team at the media center, via text by sending the word “Seminoles” to 1-844-201-9946, or through the school’s mental health partner Chris 180.
— Please return to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for updates.
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