Ahmaud Arbery

Greg McMichael, 64, his son Travis McMichael, 34, and their neighbor William “Roddie” Bryan, 50, are facing nine charges. They are the three suspects in the shooting death of African-American man Ahmaud Arbery, which was condemned by Black Lives Matter protesters.

On June 24, 2020, Cobb County district attorney Joyette M. Holmes announced the charges Greg, Travis and Bryan are facing at the Glynn County Courthouse in Brunswick, Georgia, United States. Here is the list of charges:

1. 4 counts of felony murder
2. 2 counts of aggravated assault
3. malice murder
4. false imprisonment
5. criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment

“This is another positive step, another great step, for finding justice for Ahmaud, for finding justice for this family and for the community beyond,” FOX 5 Atlanta quoted Holmes as saying. Due to the statewide judicial emergency rules in Georgia in response to the new coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the Cobb District Attorney’s Office presented the case to an existing grand jury, she said.

Holmes told the publication that the COVID-19 pandemic may slow down the prosecution of Greg, Travis and Bryan. She added that the newly passed hate crimes bill House Bill 426, which Georgia governor Brian Kemp is expected to sign, would not apply to the Arbery’s murder case because of the timing.

Arbery was a Brunswick native. He was 25 years old at the time of his death on February 23, 2020.

That day, Arbery was jogging on Holmes Road just before entering its intersection with Satilla Drive in the Satilla Shores, a suburban subdivision near his home on the outskirts of Brunswick. Three break-ins or thefts were reported in that area from December 2019 to January 2020.

After seeing Arbery, Greg and Travis jumped into their white pickup truck and chased the African-American man. Before pursuing Arbery, Greg also informed Bryan, who recorded the fatal shooting of the victim using a cellphone from his vehicle.

Armed with a shotgun, Travis ambushed Arbery and shot him three times. Gregory, who was armed with a .357 Magnum revolver, stood nearby in the truck bed.