EUCLID, Ohio — A standoff that involved a SWAT team in Euclid on Thursday resulted in the arrest of the man wanted for a double shooting at a Kroger near Atlanta in 2021.
According to a release by the U.S. Marshals' Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force, investigators in Georgia and Ohio spent the last two and a half years trying to track down 27-year-old Devonte Lavonne Childs. Last month, law enforcement received information that Childs was hiding in Euclid.
Task force members found Childs at a home in the 25000 block of Tungston Avenue in Euclid. When officers approached the house, the NOVFTF says Childs pointed a gun in their direction. Euclid police responded along with the Eastside Departments Group Enforcement (EDGE) SWAT and the Ohio State Highway Patrol's Special Response Team (SRT). Childs eventually surrendered to police without further incident. Officers found two guns inside the home.
“Law enforcement never gave up on this case and the U.S. Marshals never gives up on finding their fugitives. Anyone on the run should know you will be found if the U.S. Marshals are looking for you," said U.S. Marshal Pete Elliott in a statement.
The NOVFTF says Childs will remain in custody in Cleveland until he can be extradited back to Georgia to face the charges against him.
Childs was wanted for a shooting that happened at the parking lot of Kroger in Sandy Springs, Georgia on Aug. 17, 2021. According to police, Childs shot Yemi Mabiaku five times in the back, resulting in his death. Another person was also shot during the incident but survived.
Our Atlanta TEGNA sister station 11 Alive reported that Childs is facing two counts of possession of a firearm during commission of a felony, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and aggravated assault with intent to murder. A second suspect in the shooting surrendered to police three days later.
