Two arrested, two others sought
Two Milledgeville teens have been arrested and two more are being sought by Eatonton Police Department in connection with an early morning shooting at the Shell Food Mart in Eatonton.
Shootings are a rarity in the city of Eatonton, but there were two shootings on the same date and in the same location last weekend.
An Eatonton man was shot and killed in the second shooting, which happened around 6 p.m. Sunday, June 4 at the Shell Food Mart and gas station on Sumter Street in Eatonton. The person accused of that crime turned himself in to authorities the next day.
Only 16 hours before that incident, gang members opened gunfire on their rivals in the parking lot of the same gas station, according to Eatonton Police Chief Howell Cardwell.
The Shell Food Mart is open 24/7. The business remained closed and surrounded by yellow crime tape while authorities processed the scene. It was turned back over to the owners Tuesday morning, Cardwell said.
Both crimes were investigated jointly by Eatonton Police Department and Putnam County Sheriff’s Office.
“I appreciate everybody’s help in the investigation and in the arrests,” Cardwell said. “Between the two shootings, it’s been exhausting for everybody, but we were not going to stop until we had them.”
Although the police chief and sheriff acknowledged the first shooting, they remained mum about releasing the details publicly until they were further along in the investigation.
A few minutes before 2 a.m. on June 4, about 10 people were in front of the Shell, when another group walked by and began firing guns, shooting out windows and car windows.
The two groups were rival gang members, belonging to the Gangster Disciples and Bloods in Milledgeville, according to Cardwell.
“We found more than 30 shell casings of .9’s, .40’s, and .223’s, so all types of guns were used,” Cardwell said.
Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills said they also found shell casings in front of the A Kid’s World of Peace daycare across the street from the Shell Food Mart.
When Cardwell watched the security video from the gas station, he did not recognize any of the people involved.
“So, I figured they were from Milledgeville, so I called Milledgeville Police Department and (Investigator Brandon Crawford) came here and watched the video and immediately recognized them because they’ve had a lot of dealings with them,” he said.
Warrants were obtained for the arrests of two of the suspects, and at 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, the warrants were executed in a raid on their Pennington Road house in Milledgeville.
“That house was riddled with bullet holes, mostly on the exterior where they’ve had so many drive-by’s there,” Sills said. “It is a well-known house among law enforcement in Milledgeville and Baldwin County because of the many shootings there.”
In addition to Cardwell, Sills, PCSO Lt. Harry Luke and four other Eatonton police officers, the raid was executed by Milledgeville Police Department officers, Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office deputies, Macon-Bibb K9 units, and two state probation officers.
Arrested in the raid were:
- Jaquavious Draymon Solomon, who had just turned 17 five days before the shooting, of Milledgeville. He is facing charges of six counts of aggravated assault, two counts of cruelty to children first degree, and five counts of criminal damage to property in the second degree.
- Miyah Angelo Pittman, 19, of Milledgeville. She is charged with six counts of aggravated assault party to a crime, five counts of criminal damage to property in the second-degree party to a crime, two counts of cruelty to children and first-degree party to a crime.
The officers also impounded a Hyundai Sonata that Pittman and Solomon allegedly had driven to the scene. Cardwell said they parked the car and got out and walked past the gas station and opened fire.
Both Solomon and Pittman were brought before the magistrate Wednesday, June 7, and were ordered to be held without bond.