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MONROE, Ga. - A shooting on Christmas night in Monroe left a woman dead and her husband injured, with police arresting a family member in connection with the violence.
Crime scene tape and flashing blue lights filled the 400 block of Maple Lane on Christmas night.
Investigators responded to the area shortly after 6 p.m. after receiving a call about a possible shooting. Upon arrival, officers discovered a woman deceased in the front seat of an SUV. Her husband, also shot, was rushed to a local hospital where he was treated and later released.
Monroe Police Chief RV Watts identified the victims as married couple Tyesha and Jermaul Colley, and said it didn't take long for officers to narrow in on a suspect.
Investigators say they identified 21-year-old Devin Sullivan, a relative of the victims, as the gunman. Information provided by family members helped police locate Sullivan at an apartment on Plaza Trace, which is about a mile and a half away from the crime scene. Law enforcement, armed with warrants for murder and a search, deployed a tactical team to the scene.
Devin Sullivan (Walton County Sheriff's Office)
"They were able to make entry into the apartment where the suspect was right there in the doorway, and we had a peaceful resolution, brought him into custody without any incidents," Watts said.
FOX 5 cameras were rolling as Sullivan was brought out of the building in handcuffs.
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Watts said a large part of that peaceful resolution was thanks to Sullivan's parents.
"The mom and dad both did their best to help us bring this to a peaceful resolve. They were trying to communicate with the suspect through our PA systems, trying to get him to come out," he said.
A man was seen being walked out by law enforcement from an apartment located at 666 Plaza Trace in Monroe on Dec. 25, 2024. (FOX 5)
"It’s devastating especially on Christmas," said Melissa Atkinson "We never expected anything like this."
Family members told FOX 5’s Elizabeth Rawlins that the couple was celebrating Christmas and had just opened presents. As the couple was packing up their SUV, that’s when family members say their nephew snapped.
"She had just given him money for Christmas," said Colley’s father Johnny Atkinson.
Colley was an assistant minister at the First African Baptist Church of Monroe and was also a schoolteacher in Rockdale County.
"We didn’t know it was this bad until yesterday," said Atkinson.
Sullivan was charged with murder and aggravated assault and will be held at the Walton County Jail as the investigation continues.
Investigators are working to determine the motive behind the shooting. If you have any information that could help with the investigation, call Detective Stephen Pearce at (943) 227-4515 or Detective Jeremy Caldwell at (678) 522-1236.
The Source: The details in this article were provided by the Monroe Police Department at the scene.