HENRY COUNTY, Ga. — An hours-long standoff at a hotel came to an end Friday night with the arrest of a Henry County murder suspect, the sheriff's office said.
Authorities were called to the Home2 Suites by Hilton along Mill Road in McDonough around 5 p.m. after they got word of a man believed to be connected with a deadly shooting from earlier this summer, according to Chief Deputy Mike Yarborough with the Henry County Sheriff's Office.
"This was a long investigation to be able to bring us to this point tonight to be able to locate him," Yarborough said, adding that authorities have been following several leads and collecting tips for weeks.
Major Jason Bolton with the Henry County Police Department said the sheriff's office along with the county police department, fire rescue, and a SWAT unit were working to arrest 30-year-old Jamil Gray.
Gray is accused of murder after a deadly shooting at a Stockbridge convenience store on June 30 by GA-138 and North Henry Boulevard, authorities said. In a release, the sheriff's office identified the victim in that shooting as Fitzgerald Carelus.
Police said he is also accused of aggravated assault in Atlanta.
A witness shared photos of several law enforcement vehicles outside of the hotel.
Deputies asked people to avoid the area as they worked to get Gray out of the hotel. Bolton said hotel guests were evacuated as a safety precaution.
Bolton added there were two people in the room with Gray but they were able to get out safely. SWAT went into the room where Gray was armed.
He was ultimately arrested at 9:59 p.m. and has been booked into the Henry County jail. He is facing charges including felony murder.
Gray nor hotel guests or law enforcement officers were hurt in the standoff. No shots were fired, authorities said.
“This was an outstanding textbook joint incident command with the HCSO (Henry County Sheriff's Office), the HCPD (Henry County Police Department), HCFR (Henry County Fire Rescue) and the EMA (Henry County Emergency Management Agency). We immediately set up containment where the HCSO and Police Tactical teams were activated. Upon arrival, progressive SWAT measures continued until Mr. Gray was safely taken into custody and with no injuries to any of our officers," Sheriff Reginald B. Scandrett said in a statement.
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