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After the search for the alleged murderer of Gwinnett County police officer Antwan Toney, about to go from a localized manhunt to a fleeing national investigation early Sunday night, it was learned that a team SWAT had executed a search warrant in a residence located near the filming took place.
But Tafarhee Maynard, 18, was not there. Gwinnett, police spokesman, Sgt. Jake Smith said that it was "50/50" that Maynard was still in Snellville.
"It's also possible that he gets in a car and is now in Arizona," Smith said.
James Joyner, Acting Commander of the US Regional Task Force on Fugitives in the Southeast Marshals Region, echoed uncertainty about Maynard's whereabouts.
"I can not say he is not in the area. I can not say he is in the area, "he said Sunday afternoon. "But we must expand our research."
Agent Antwan Toney was killed while he was answering a call about a suspicious vehicle.
As the game of cat and mouse was played, some of Toney's devastated colleagues began the dark task of planning his memorial service.
Sgt. Kris Llewellyn trained the young Californian enthusiast, who had been trying for years to become a police officer. When he finally received the call, he seized the opportunity with unparalleled fervor.
"He was a great starter," Llewellyn said Sunday afternoon, arranging stuffed flowers and animals, left in Toney's memory, in a patrol car parked in front of Gwinnett Police Headquarters in Lawrenceville. . But this ambition has never eclipsed her big heart, she said.
"This smiling face that we see on all the pictures is what it was. An absolutely fantastic kid, "said Llewellyn, adding that Toney was" very popular with his fellow officers ".
"It's incredibly difficult."
Less than 24 hours earlier, Toney and another officer approached a vehicle deemed suspect by an unincorporated Crump's Landing resident in Snellville. Investigators believe that there were three others in the car, although only one was identified: Isaiah Pretlow, 19, was arrested late Saturday night and charged with aggravated assault. Bond was refused.
Several shots were fired, but Smith said the police were convinced Maynard had shot the bullet that shot Toney.
The neighbors who heard the gunshot were stunned by the violent reaction that followed an incident that caused the traffic to stop.
Police initially suspected that the suspects were smoking marijuana, but could not confirm it Sunday night.
"An 18-year-old man smokes a joint to start firing, that's madness," said Scott Elzy, whose friend, Rick Green, lives just a few doors down from Crumps Landing Road, where the Incident is produced.
Green said this corner of the neighborhood, with its scattered vacant homes, has become a popular and somewhat threatening meeting place for teenagers in the area.
"I do not get out of my truck without my gun in my pocket," Green said. "I have my gun on me now."
The suspects rushed into their car before crashing nearby. Pretlow, Maynard and the other occupants of the vehicle fled on foot.
Joyner said they had not yet been able to connect the suspect to a stolen vehicle. It is unknown if he stays on foot.
The police responded to several useful tips from the public, said Joyner, refusing to give details.
"Now it's more of a detective job," he said. "That's what we do and we excel at it."
It's almost certain that Maynard will be apprehended – the suspects who shoot at the cops are almost always. The murderer in the Fulton County Court House, Brian Nichols, was arrested after a 27-hour escape in the 2005 incident. Ricky Dubose and Donnie Rowe escaped a bit longer, but escaped convicts accused of Killing two prison officers in Putnam County in 2017, were found in Tennessee, three days after the shooting.
The capture of Maynard could put an end to his activities, but no comfort for those who knew Toney best.
"It was a warrior," said friend Reginald Pierre of Snellville. Toney has always wanted to be the first man on the scene, said Pierre, but it was not a matter of machismo.
"He believed in justice," he said. "He saw himself as the guy who could defuse a tense situation. Protecting and serving meant something to him.
Toney just turned 30 and celebrates this event with his friends in Las Vegas. Pierre said that Toney fell in love with Atlanta and decided to move here to begin his career in the police field. Most of his family stays in California.
"It's a tragic loss for the community, the police department," said Pierre. "He was a super cop. And a great friend. "
Toney's funeral is tentatively scheduled for Wednesday. Toney is the fourth Georgian officer killed by a shot this year and the 45th nationwide – the same number of deaths in 2017.
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