Four dead after shooting in Atlanta area; shooter at large, officials say

Police were searching for an “armed and dangerous” man after four people were fatally shot in an Atlanta-area neighborhood Saturday.

Three men and one woman were killed about 10:45 a.m. in Hampton, a city of about 8,000 people 25 miles southeast of downtown Atlanta, authorities said. The city is waiting to release their names while families are notified, Hampton Police Chief James Turner said at a news conference Saturday.

Police have issued four murder warrants for suspect Andre Longmore, 40, who is “known to be armed and dangerous,” Henry County Sheriff Reginald B. Scandrett said at the news conference. Authorities are offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to his capture.

“I’m going to say this directly to you, Mr. Longmore: Wherever you are, we will hunt you down in any hole that you may be residing in and bring you to custody. Period,” Scandrett said.

Law enforcement officials have yet to identify a motive and said it is unclear whether the suspect was related to or knew the victims. There are four crime scenes in the area, authorities said, though they did not give many details.

Betty Alderson said she was unaware of the shooting until about 2 p.m., when a neighbor asked the police why crime scene tape was ringed around the cul-de-sac. She said “nobody was allowed in or out” of the Dogwood Lakes area all afternoon.

“It’s always been a nice town, no crime or anything,” Alderson said, adding that she was shocked by the shooting.

Jennifer Gill, who was locked down inside the library, told Channel 2 Action News the shooting occurred nearby. The library shut down after a woman came inside, saying she feared for her life and did not have a way to call the police. The lockdown ended about 1:15 p.m., Gill said. Helicopters and “heavily armed” police circled the area midday, she added.

Local officials have contacted the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to ask for assistance, GBI spokesperson Nelly Miles wrote in an email to The Washington Post.

The shooting was the 30th mass killing in 2023, according to an Associated Press and USA Today database. (The Post defines a mass killing as an event in which four or more people, not including the shooter, have been killed by gunfire.) More than 140 people died as a result of those shootings. The first half of the year was the deadliest six months of mass killings recorded since at least 2006, the AP reported Friday.