CUMMING, Ga. — The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said it is investigating after a 32-year-old man died in police custody after an arrest by Cumming officers for shoplifting.
The bureau said the man reported having difficulty breathing at the time of his arrest. He was taken to a hospital and his "condition continued to decline," according to the GBI.
The incident occurred on Sunday at a Target in Cumming.
The GBI said the Target's loss prevention team contacted Forsyth County 911 about an alleged shoplifter, identified as a 32-year-old from Brooklyn, NY.
Cumming Police Department officers responded to the Target and the man allegedly ran from them. Officers chased him as he ran into nearby woods, but he "eventually surrendered to police" who "took (him) into custody without incident."
As officers cuffed the man, the GBI said they found an injury to his leg and he reported "having difficulty breathing."
Police called EMS to treat the man, the GBI said, and he was taken to a hospital where his "condition continued to decline, and he was ultimately pronounced deceased at the hospital."
11Alive has reached out to both Cumming Police and the GBI for more details on this incident.
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