3 suspects arrested after young boy shot in DeKalb County

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — Three people were arrested in connection to a shooting that seriously injured a 3-year-old boy over the weekend, according to DeKalb County police.

Just before 7 p.m. Sunday, police responded to a shooting on North Stone Mountain Lithonia Road. When they got there, they found the boy with a gunshot wound.

Police said the child and his father were innocent bystanders.

“What we know at this point is deeply troubling,” DeKalb Police Chief Greg Padrick said during a press conference Monday afternoon.

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Padrick said several people were arguing outside a gas station when someone started shooting.

Nearby, the 3-year-old victim and his father were stuck in traffic. Bullets hit their car, with one round striking the child. The father was not injured.

“Let me be very clear: This child was an innocent victim,” Padrick said. “This incident was reckless, senseless, and completely unacceptable.”

The boy was rushed to the hospital, where he remains in critical condition as of Monday afternoon, Padrick said.

Investigators quickly identified the suspects with leads that included video evidence.

Officers pulled over the suspects’ car on Memorial Drive near North Hairston Road and detained all occupants. Officers then executed a search warrant at a home on Rock Meadow Drive, where they reportedly seized a gun and other evidence connected with the shooting.

Police arrested three suspects — two men and one juvenile — on charges of aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.

The adult suspects were identified as Jonathon Tate, 20, and Julius Hughes, 21.

All three suspects remain in custody.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with this child and his family,” Padrick said. “No parent should ever have to experience this, and no child should ever be harmed by the careless actions of others.”

Anyone with information can send an anonymous tip through the free DeKalb County PD (Tip411) app or by texting “DKPD” to 847411, followed by the tip.

“In DeKalb County, we have made public safety a top priority and we will continue to be aggressive in our approach to bringing people who perpetrate crime against our community and against our citizens swiftly to justice,” said DeKalb County CEO Lorraine Cochran-Johnson.

This is a developing story. Check back with Atlanta News First for updates.