By Joe Johnson
An Athens man on Thursday reportedly was hospitalized in critical condition a day after he was shot at an eastside mobile home park.
According to an Athens-Clarke County police report, officers responded at about 10 :44 p.m. Wednesday to a shooting that just occurred at Hallmark Estates Mobile Home Park at 705 Spring Valley Road.
Upon arrival at the home where the shooting happened, the officers found 27-year-old Devante Gainey of Timber Ridge Drive on the living room floor, bleeding profusely from a gunshot wound to his shoulder, according to the report.
The victim’s fiancée, with whom Gainey was visiting, told officers that about an hour prior to the shooting three high school-aged black males had met with Gainey and had a short conversation and then left, with one stating, “Oh shoot, I’ll be back,” the report noted. She reportedly stated that there was no argument and was unable to hear what was being talked about.
About an hour later, someone knocked at the door but no one announced themselves, according to the report, and when Gainey opened the door one of the three visitors from earlier pointed a gun at Gainey, said “gotcha ya” and shot him once in the shoulder before running away with the other suspects.
The victim’s fiancée described the shooter as a light skinned black male who was 5 feet, 10 inches tall, had long hair that appeared to have had a sponge brush run through it, wore a black hoodie, and shot left-handed, according to the police report.
Two other witnesses to the shooting said they had seen the suspects so frequently that they were almost certain that they lived somewhere at Hallmark Estates, the report noted.
Anyone with information about the crime is asked to contact Detective Scott Black at (762) 400-7058 or scott.black@accgov.com