THIRD MAN CHARGED OVER DEATH OF BLACK JOGGER

Written by on May 22, 2020

A motorist who filmed the shooting of an unarmed black man in the US state of Georgia has been charged with murder.

William Bryan Jr is also accused of a criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment on Thursday, said the Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI).

Ahmaud Arbery, 25, was jogging when he was shot dead during a confrontation with a father and son in Brunswick on 23 February.

Gregory McMichael, 64, and son Travis, 34, were charged with murder on 7 May.

In the moments before the fatal confrontation, the McMichaels, who are white, armed themselves with a pistol and shotgun and pursued Mr Arbery in a pickup truck in the Satilla Shores neighbourhood.

Gregory McMichael told police he believed that Mr Arbery resembled the suspect in a series of local break-ins.

Mr Bryan’s 36-second video leaked online on 5 May, generating nationwide outcry that was swiftly followed by murder charges. It was filmed by Mr Bryan from his vehicle while he was driving behind Mr Arbery.

The clip appears to show Mr Arbery running down a tree-lined street as the McMichaels wait ahead for him in their vehicle.

A tussle follows and the younger Mr McMichael appears to fire a gun at point blank range at Mr Arbery, who falls to the street.

The Arbery family welcomed Thursday’s arrest, with their lawyer Lee Merritt saying Mr Bryan’s alleged involvement in the killing “was obvious to us, many around the country and after their thorough investigation, it was clear to the GBI as well”.

Mr Bryan is expected to be booked into the Glynn County jail, where the McMichaels are also being kept as they await trial.


-BBC NEWS


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