FRANKLIN COUNTY, Ga. — Authorities have arrested a 64-year-old man following a drive-by shooting in Northeast Georgia that narrowly missed two people sitting on a front porch.
According to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were dispatched around 2 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 6, after a 911 caller reported gunshots fired at a residence along Gumlog Road.
Investigators determined that an unknown person drove past the home earlier that day and fired multiple rounds toward the residence. No injuries were reported. Sheriff Scott Andrews said deputies found shell casings on Gumlog Road in front of the home and observed possible damage to the residence.
During the investigation, deputies identified a suspect vehicle and learned it may have been involved in a similar shooting in Lavonia in Hart County.
Search warrants for the vehicle and a related residence were obtained and executed Tuesday evening. Authorities took Richard Albert Watkins, 64, into custody without incident. Firearms were recovered from the residence, officials said.
Watkins faces multiple charges, including two counts of aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, discharging a firearm from a public highway, possession of marijuana (misdemeanor), and drugs to be kept in the original container. Additional charges may be filed in connection with the Hart County incident.
Andrews credited assistance from the Hart County Sheriff’s Office and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, noting the cooperation helped lead to Watkins’ arrest within about 12 hours of the incidents.
