Gregory and Travis McMichael have been arrested in connection to the death of Ahmaud Arbery following video of Arbery’s death spread on social media.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced Thursday night that the McMichaels were taken into custody and will be booked into the Glynn County Jail.
According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Arbery was in the Satilla Shores neighborhood in Brunswick, GA when both Gregory and Travis McMichael confronted Arbery with two firearms on February 23. During the encounter, Travis McMichael shot and killed Arbery, prosecutors said.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigations said that an investigation was launched on Tuesday following a video that was released of Abrery’s death.
Officials with the GBI said they received a request for involvement in the case at about 9:30 p.m. Tuesday evening, the same day the video was released. Agents reviewed the case files on Wednesday and determined probable cause for arrest.
Vic Reynolds, the director of the GBI, said the video did play a role in their investigation.
"It's a very important piece of evidence. Is it the only piece of evidence in this case? No," Reynolds said.
Reynolds also said more arrests could follow in the case as the Bureau continues to investigate.
Arbery’s death prompted a social media hashtag #JusticeForAhmaud. Arbery’s death prompted discussions nationally on the role racial bias plays in the criminal justice system.
“It is clear that law enforcement authorities must immediately arrest the McMichaels for this crime,” the NAACP said on Wednesday in a joint statement. “The failure to hold these two individuals accountable for the killing of Mr. Arbery would mean that white citizens may hunt down an unarmed, non-violent Black man in broad daylight and kill him with impunity. Nothing in Georgia law licenses this conduct. The McMichaels must stand trial for this killing.”
