A suspect accused of killing four neighbors in the Atlanta suburb of Hampton, Georgia, was killed Sunday after a manhunt, authorities said.
«The monster is dead,» Henry County Sheriff Reginald B. Scandrett said at a news conference Sunday afternoon. «The entire state of Georgia can breathe a little easier tonight.»
Police tracked the suspect from Saturday’s bloodshed to an area near the Henry County-Clayton County line, about 20 miles south of Atlanta, he said.
Sworn officers exchanged fire with the man twice before he was «neutralized» and ultimately pronounced dead, the sheriff said.
Officials had been searching for Andre Longmore, 40, and a GMC Acadia SUV he was believed to be driving. On Sunday, authorities were armed with an arrest warrant based on four murder charges.
Authorities said Longmore fatally shot four residents of Dogwood Lakes Drive and Dogwood Ridge around 10:45 a.m. Saturday. On Sunday, Hampton Police Chief James Turner identified the victims as 67-year-old Scott Levitt; Shirley Levitt, 66; Steve Blizzard, 65; and Ronald Jeffers, 66.
He said that while the motive remained a mystery, Longmore was a resident of the Dogwood Lakes Drive community. The Acadia was stolen from Blizzard, Turner said.
“This community is grieving,” said Hampton City Manager Alex Cohilas. «We are grateful to have achieved a resolution where there has been no further loss of life.»
Turner said his city of more than 8,000 last reported one homicide in 2018 and is one of the safest communities in the state. «It’s just not normal for us,» she said of the violence on Saturday.
Scandrett spoke of «a couple» of law enforcement officers who were injured on Saturday. The worst of Saturday’s injuries was suffered by an officer who was shot in the back, the sheriff said.
The law enforcement officer was conscious, breathing and expected to survive, Scandrett said. At least one other officer sustained non-life-threatening injuries to him, authorities said.
The spate of killings and the law enforcement response were being investigated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.