Gregory McMichael, 64, along with his son, Travis McMichael, 34, has been arrested for the brutal murder of unarmed black jogger Ahmaud Arbery.
Their mugshots have been released to the media via the Glynn County Jail.
Gregory McMichael and Travis McMichael have been slapped with murder and aggravated assault charges, according to a statement that was issued by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Note that Gregory McMichael is a former officer with the Glynn County Police Department who retired in 2019. He was also an investigator in the Brunswick district attorney’s office for several years.
A handful of reporters were present to take pictures of the father and son duo while in handcuffs and being escorted by Georgia authorities into awaiting vehicles.
A video has surfaced, showing the shocking events that took place in February that led to the deadly shooting of 25-year-old Arbery while he was jogging in the Satilla Shores neighborhood in Brunswick, Georgia.
The cellphone video gave a look into Arbery’s last minutes on earth. Arbery, who had no weapons on him, could be seen jogging when a white pickup truck pulled up next to him, and the two men with weapons shout at him.
The black man tries to keep jogging, and one of the two white men get into a fight with him. At some point, at least two gunshots are heard, and Arbery falls to the ground.
Gregory McMichael and Travis McMichael said they followed Arbery because they believe he took part in several robberies in their neighborhood, according to a police report.
Prior to the arrest, Arbery’s mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, poured her heart out in an interview that aired on Good Morning America, where she said: “I don’t think I’ll ever be in a mental state where I can actually watch the video. I had others that watched it that shared what they saw, and that just was enough. I’m managing, and it’s really hard. It’s really been hard.”
LIVE: Georgia Bureau of Investigation holds news conference following arrests in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. https://t.co/btL9EP404Z
— NBC News (@NBCNews) May 8, 2020
Ben Crump, an attorney representing Arbery’s family, stated: “It’s outrageous that it has taken more than two months for Ahmaud Arbery’s executioners to be arrested, but better late than never. This is the first step to justice. This murderous father and son duo took the law into their own hands.”
After the video went viral on social media, including Facebook and Instagram and activists like Shaun King spoke about the matter, a large crowd of protesters marched in the area where Arbery was shot and killed.
Arbery was set to celebrate his 26 birthday on Friday.
