By Joe Johnson
Authorities are investigating the murder of a man who was fatally shot Friday night.
The incident was the second murder this year in the seat of Jackson County that has consistently been ranked as being among the safest cities in Georgia, where murder is a rare occurrence.
According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which is assisting in the investigation, the Jefferson Police Department notified them of the shooting shortly before 11 p.m. Friday, and were told that Gomez had apparently been shot near the intersection of U.S. 129 BUS and Storey Lane.
That location is near Sunshine Self Storage and Faith Baptist Church of Jefferson.
"Upon arrival, officers found Mateo Gomez unconscious from his injuries," the GBI said in a news release. "Gomez was taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville, Georgia where he died as a result of his injuries."
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Jefferson Police Department at 706-367-5231 or the GBI Regional Investigative Office in Athens at 706-542-7901.
Anonymous tips can also be submitted by calling 1-800-597-TIPS (8477), online here, or by downloading the See Something, Send Something mobile app.
The homicide occurred about eight months after another victim was found shot to death in the city of about 12,000 residents.
On Jan. 20 the body of 19-year-old Joshua Wick of Hall County was found by a motorist who was driving on Holders Siding Road, a side road off of the Jefferson Bypass.
Investigators determined that Wick had been killed somewhere else before his body was dumped on the city's street, according to Jefferson Police Chief Joe Wirthman.
Investigators have yet to determine where Wick was killed, and Wirthman said suspects in Gomez's slaying had yet to be identified.
Murder's been around a lot longer than guns have.
Thank goodness we are all free to carry concealed weapons on our person. If Mateo was packin', it did him no good. If he wasn't packing the murderer obviously was. BOTTOM LINE: No guns, no murder. Obvious exceptions exist.