LAWRENCEVILLE, GA – A frightened child hiding in a closet with two other children called 911 to report gunfire, leading police to discover four adults shot dead inside a Gwinnett County home early Friday morning.
Officers responded to the residence in the Lawrenceville area around 2:30 a.m. on January 23 after the child’s desperate call for help. When they arrived, they found a scene of carnage with four adults deceased from gunshot wounds.
Three children who had been in the home at the time of the shooting were found unharmed. One of them had the presence of mind to hide in a closet with the other two and dial 911 while the violence unfolded around them.
Police deployed a K-9 unit to search the area and located a suspect hiding in a wooded area behind the residence. The suspect’s vehicle was still parked in the driveway when officers arrived.
Authorities have not released the identities of either the victims or the suspect, and they’re not saying what relationship, if any, existed between them. However, investigators have classified the quadruple homicide as “domestic-related.”
Records indicate police had responded to calls at the same address before, though officials declined to provide specifics about those prior incidents.
“Four people dying at the same time, especially with children in the home… it’s shocking to anybody,” a police spokesperson said.
The three children were released to a family member following the incident. Their ages have not been disclosed. The investigation into what led to the deadly shooting remains ongoing.
