Authorities arrest three after motel shooting

Three people, including a brother and sister, are behind bars after a man was fatally shot early Monday in a Griffin motel room, authorities said.

Spalding County deputies responded at about 3:30 a.m. to the shooting at the Quality Inn on North Expressway, the sheriff ’s office said in a news release. They found 52-yearold Anthony Reid lying on the floor of room 204 with two gunshot wounds.

Reid was taken to Spalding Regional Hospital, but he died shortly after the ambulance left the motel, deputies said.

Spalding County’s SWAT team searched multiple rooms, including the room where the shooting occurred, and identified the suspect as 28-year-old Joshua Ray Fuller of Riverdale. It wasn’t immediately clear what prompted the shooting or whether Fuller knew the victim.

Fuller was arrested after authorities found him hiding in a nearby room. Investigators recovered the gun believed to have been used.

Fuller faces charges of felony murder, malice murder, three counts of aggravated assault, three counts of armed robbery, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

“This investigation covered a large physical area and required multiple interviews with witnesses and others in order to piece together the chain of events that led up to the murder of Anthony Reid,” Sheriff Darrell Dix said in the release. “We found that there were others involved in assisting Fuller after the shooting by attempting to aid him in hiding evidence of the crime.”

Among those charged was Fuller’s younger sister, Kristen Elaine Fuller, 26, who lives at the motel. Deputies also arrested 48-year-old Troy Edgar of Griffin. Both are charged with tampering with evidence and hindering the apprehension of a fugitive, authorities said.

“From the look of the crime scene and the evidence we gathered, it appears that when he was surprised and attacked by Fuller, Mr. Reid had no other choice, did all he could do and fought for his life in order to defend himself before being shot,” the sheriff said.

Dix said investigators also met with Reid’s relatives at their home and updated them on the shooting investigation, calling them a strong family that’s “going through a very tough time.”

All three suspects remain held at the Spalding County Jail, deputies said.