Husband killed, wife shot by accused gang members in case of mistaken identity, cops say
A husband and wife leaving a family gathering were ambushed and shot by accused gang members in a case of mistaken identity, according to a Georgia police department.
Four people have been arrested, and two suspects are still at large, according to the Albany Police Department.
The husband, Antwan Deshanay Penn, was killed, and his wife, Courtney Duncan, was injured, police said.
Penn, 35, and Duncan, 32, were driving away from the family function on March 18 when they were “ambushed by gunfire,” according to a news release posted on the Albany Police Department’s Facebook page.
About an hour earlier, the house of an accused gang member’s relative had been “shot up,” an Albany police officer said during a news conference posted on Facebook.
The accused gang members went out seeking revenge and mistook Penn and Duncan’s vehicle for one belonging to a suspected perpetrator, the police officer said.
They shot at the vehicle, killed Penn and struck Duncan multiple times, including in the head, according to police. She survived.
Detectives arrested four people between May 8 and 9, according to the news release. Nekhi Parks, 18; Montrez Nix, 17; Brian Massey, Jr., 15; and Nicholas Collier, 15; are each facing a murder charge, according to the release. They are being held in the Dougherty County Jail.
Two suspects who are brothers, Zaydren Thomas, 20, and Donnellius Thomas, 22, are at large and have warrants out for their arrest on one count of murder each, according to the release.
The Albany Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for information about whether the juveniles are being charged as adults.
More charges are expected in connection with the investigation, according to the police department.
A police officer said the suspects are accused members of a gang called “4BG.”
Penn and Duncan got married in November, according to Penn’s obituary.
“She was the air that he breathed and the sparkle in his eyes; and they cherished every moment that they shared together,” the obituary says. “Not only was he a loving and devoted husband, but an awesome father and a great provider for his family.”
Penn, who went by “Twan,” was a “very energetic young man” who played basketball and soccer and ran track, his obituary says.
He worked at Albany Beverage Company, an alcoholic beverage wholesale distributor, and was “a true joy to everyone around him,” according to his obituary.
“Friends and family all describe him as the ‘brightest light in the room,’ someone who always brought great energy and a sense of peace,” it says.
Duncan wrote on Facebook after the shooting that she had been shot in the head 1 inch from her skull and was also struck multiple times in the hand.
“We are hardworking honest people trying to have something and got caught in the devil’s rapture,” she wrote. “Thank God my child wasn’t in the car.”
Duncan told McClatchy News in a Facebook message that she was recovering well and going through therapy. She also said the people arrested in connection with her husband’s killing were “not babies.”
“Once you make adult decision you will be looked at and charged as an adult,” she wrote. “Thy will has been done once God has spoken. (There’s) nothing else to be said.”
Albany is about 180 miles south of Atlanta.
Three family members get shot trying to stop man hitting girlfriend, Texas cops say
Two dads vanished months ago. Then human remains were found on Georgia farm, cops say
8-month-old fatally shot as mother and father fight over handgun, Texas officials say
