Three teens are charged with murder after police say their plot to burn down a house as part of an “ongoing lovers’ quarrel” in Griffin, Georgia, turned into a shooting.
Deputies arrived at a highway “man down” call last week and discovered a man had been shot to death, the Spalding County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release Saturday. The victim was identified as Johnathan Gilbert.
The three teenagers: Sydney Maughon, 18; Jeremy Munson, 19; and McKenzie Davenport, 19, were allegedly vandalizing Gilbert’s home when he came out to confront them, according to Spalding County Sheriff Darrell Dix.
“The suspects ran back to the car, and as Gilbert approached them, Sydney Maughon, a passenger in the back seat of the car, pulled out a firearm and shot him multiple times,” Dix said. “The suspects drove off leaving Gilbert dead in the middle of Dobbins Mill Road.”
Dix did not offer any details as to why, only that there appeared to be a “lovers’ quarrel in progress.”
Detectives traced a cell phone number belonging to one of the three suspects to a neighboring county, where a local police department located a car that authorities believe was used in the incident. A weapon was found in a vehicle search.
The three teens are charged with felony homicide, assault, and trespassing. Maughon and Munson are also charged with murder, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.
While police said Maughon was believed to have pulled the trigger, Dix claimed the three suspects are guilty of the murder because they went to his home with the intent to commit a crime.
“They went to lay eggs in a house, the victim confronted them while they were doing it, she lost her life, they fled and left her body in the middle of the road,” Dix said. “Together they bought that ticket; now together they can travel on that trip.”
Court records were not available for the teens on Sunday and it is unclear whether they have retained attorneys. County inmate records show Maughon, Munson and Davenport are on remand.
