MCDONOUGH, Ga. — Henry County authorities said it was thanks to the help of nearly a dozen agencies -- both within and outside the state -- that a man wanted for critically wounding a detention officer and fatally shooting another man was finally captured after spending more than a week on the run.
It was on Nov. 4 when the suspect, 32-year-old Brentson Bernard Thomas, allegedly shot the still-unnamed detention officer five times and killed second victim -- identified for the first time Monday as Michael Brown -- at the Hadden Place Apartment complex in McDonough, Georgia.
Thomas ran off after the shooting, and had been wanted since, with authorities issuing a statewide Blue Alert and posting a $20,000 reward for his arrest and indictment.
On Sunday night, just shy of 10 days on the run, authorities found and arrested Thomas, who was also wanted out of Clayton County and Miami-Dade County, Florida.
In a Monday press conference, authorities, led by Henry County Sheriff Reginald Scandrett, gave more information into how the search for the suspect came to a resolution, with officials emphasizing that it was thanks to the inter-agency cooperation and "good old-fashioned police work" that Thomas was taken into custody without incident.
In the update, officials with the U.S. Marshalls office said that they had been tracking Thomas as he hopped from motel to motel, hiding as he traveled south from McDonough.
"We knew where he was," a spokesman said. "We were just looking for the right time" to arrest Thomas.
The Marshals said it was thanks to intel from agencies in Florida and the "eyes" from the Georgia State Patrol post near the Macon area that Thomas was finally captured just after 1 p.m. Sunday at a Bibb County Econo Lodge motel.
But the search for suspects isn't over completely. Authorities are still looking for 29-year-old Dimarie Ayanna Coulter, who is wanted on charges of hindering the apprehension of a fugitive Thomas was on the run. Two additional people were arrested for allegedly helping Thomas evade capture.
While authorities went into detail on Thomas' capture, they did not release much information about the circumstances surrounding the shooting, except to say that an internal investigation has since been opened. The shooting itself is still under investigation by the Henry County Police Department, according to the Henry County sheriff.
All the agencies who spoke at the press conference underscored the cooperation between each other that ultimately led to Thomas' capture, echoing that "if you purposely hurt one of us, we are coming to get you," Sheriff Scandrett warned. "Period."
Besides that strong message, all offered prayers for the detention officer, who Scandrett said is "progressing very well."
Thomas, meanwhile, is scheduled to have a preliminary hearing on Dec. 6 after his case was bound over to Superior Court, following his Monday first appearance.
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