ATLANTA — A mother says her 16-year-old son was shot and killed overnight.
Family identified him as the nephew of a man who died in a 2020 police shooting.
Channel 2′s Steve Gehlbach reported from Cato Street where police put up crime scene tape in front of a home.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
Officers responded around 4:30 a.m. and found a person shot to death. The victim, Jakari Brooks, 16, is the nephew of Rayshard Brooks.
His mother, Stardrecous Brooks, told Gehlbach that she heard five gunshots and when her son didn’t come home Tuesday night, her other son went looking for him.
Hours later, her son’s friend found Jakari shot to death.
“I was walking around trying to find him. I didn’t want to think it, but I said my baby was probably laying up in the woods. I kept saying that,” Stardrecous Brooks said.
Police have not confirmed what led up to the shooting.
His uncle, Rayshard Brooks, was shot and killed by an Atlanta police officer outside a Wendy’s in 2020 that sparked protests and got national attention.
That case led to weeks of protests.
Garry Stokes was one of the protesters.
“Different circumstances, but that’s too much emotions and confusion set on a family right now,” Stokes said.
He rushed to the scene Wednesday when he heard the victim was the nephew of Rayshard Brooks.
Atlanta police aren’t saying anything about what led up to the shooting or who pulled the trigger.
Stardrecous Brooks said her son was in the area to get a scooter from a home when he was shot.
“It was about a scooter. I don’t know what the situation is,” she said.
Late Wednesday, Channel 2′s Audrey Washington spoke with a man at the home.
He said two boys were trying to steal from the house when the homeowner fired in self-defense.
Stardrecous Brooks says she wants more answers, but the friend her son was with ran from the scene.
TRENDING STORIES:
- Video shows women attack Sam’s Club employee over pizza
- Mom says Dolce & Gabbana birthday earrings worth thousands are missing in the mail
- Scattered storms with heavy rain, frequent lightning expected this afternoon
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
IN OTHER NEWS
:quality(70)/d1hfln2sfez66z.cloudfront.net/07-16-2024/t_85abcab02cc94435abae721a5b6a02f3_name_Crooks_Phone_Photo_1.jpg)
©2024 Cox Media Group
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/G3OA3OPCI5GA3IBIHHLQR4RQ4U.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/C2Z52ITB5NCMPACPAEF73LMTWI.JPEG)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/JZHT2SHHSZCTHIRFJYZ6V22QSI.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/I2J322SGDJBJXEB3GVSC5VQ2HU.png)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/Z4YRBORQNNGRDEMQWRH46SRWIA.jpeg)