The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Police make arrest in fatal shooting of Gwinnett woman

- By Chelsea Prince chelsea.prince@ajc.com and John Spink john.spink@ajc.com

Hours after a woman was shot to death inside a Gwinnett County home, police and SWAT officers took a suspect into custody.

Ray Charles Evans, 31, of Lawrencevi­lle, was charged with felony murder in the shooting death of Shakiyla Sample. The 29-year-old Lawrencevi­lle woman was found dead inside a home in the 1600 block of Prospect Church Road after a neighbor reported hearing gunshots about 4:30 a.m. Monday, according to Gwinnett police.

Detectives collected evidence and spoke with witnesses at the home late into the morning, quickly developing a lead on a suspect, police spokesman Fed Joseph told The Atlanta Journal-constituti­on from the scene. A motive behind the shooting was not disclosed.

The homicide is the third for Gwinnett County police in 48 hours. Within one hour Sunday morning, two men were killed in separate shootings in a Snellville-area neighborho­od and at a strip mall near Norcross.

Shortly after 2 a.m., officers responded to a report of a person shot and found one man dead inside a home on Forrest Bend Lane. The victim, whose name was not released, had been shot in the torso, according to police.

While investigat­ors were working that scene, Gwinnett police got a call at 2:50 a.m. about a shooting on the corner of Britt Road and Jimmy Carter Boulevard, with three victims. After hearing gunshots, an off-duty officer left his security post at a nearby karaoke bar and found one man dead in the parking lot of 11 Lounge.

Two other men were found shot nearby, and they were taken to a hospital. Their conditions were not provided.

Evans’ is the only arrest made in the weekend homicides. In addition to the murder charge, he faces charges of aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. He had not yet been booked into the Gwinnett County Jail on Monday afternoon.

 ?? JOHN SPINK/JOHN.SPINK@AJC.COM ?? Police secure the area around a Lawrencevi­lle home where a woman was found shot to death early Monday and a man arrested.
JOHN SPINK/JOHN.SPINK@AJC.COM Police secure the area around a Lawrencevi­lle home where a woman was found shot to death early Monday and a man arrested.

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