Body of fallen DeKalb officer escorted to home county
BALDWIN, Ga. (FOX 5 Atlanta) - Law enforcement from multiple counties joined together Saturday morning to escort the remains of a DeKalb police officer killed in the line of duty back home.
Members of Habersham County’s Emergency Services, Fire and Law Enforcement agencies left from the DeKalb Medical Examiners Office and escorted 24-year-old Officer Edgar Flores' remains to the Whitfield Funeral Home in Baldwin, Georgia.
The men and women of the Gainesville Police, Gainesville Fire, Hall County Fire, Habersham County Emergency Services, and the Hall County Sheriff's Office lined the overpasses and intersections on the route to pay their respects to the fallen officer, who was fatally shot during a traffic stop on Candler Road Thursday night.
MORE: DeKalb County Police Department honors fallen Officer Edgar Isidro Flores
In a news release, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation identified the shooter as 33-year-old Brandon Taylor of Decatur.
According to the release, Flores had stopped a vehicle driven by Taylor at 2090 Candler Road when Taylor ran from the scene.
According to the GBI, Flores chased Taylor to the parking lot of a business at 2091 Candler Road, where Taylor shot the officer multiple times and ran from the scene.
Medics rushed Flores to Grady Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Responding police K-9 Officer Indi and SWAT officers tracked Taylor and found him hiding in a pile of tires behind a business at 2125 Candler Road where the GBI said he fired his weapon and struck the K-9. Three DeKalb SWAT officers returned fire, wounding Taylor. He was later pronounced dead at Grady Memorial Hospital.
On Saturday, police told FOX 5 that K-9 Indi was out of surgery and recovering. Officials said Indi has lost an eye, but may be released from the hospital later Saturday.
RELATED: K-9 Officer Indi released from vet after shooting
On Friday, members of the DeKalb County Police Department, top-ranking county officials, and attendees held moments of silence at a police graduation for 15 new DeKalb Police recruits.
Officer Flores graduated from the academy on Nov. 4, 2017, and was hired by the police department in May 2017.
Support has poured in from law enforcement agencies across metro Atlanta. Several different agencies responded to Grady Memorial Hospital to lend moral support and honor the officer's service on Thursday night.
The GBI will conduct its independent investigation. Once complete, it will be turned over to the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office for review.
RELATED: Police identify DeKalb County officer killed in the line of duty