The Atlanta Journal-Constitution released new footage that shows Ahmaud Arbery moments before he was shot and killed by Gregory and Travis McMichael on February 23. The father and son claim they were attempting to perform a citizen's arrest when they confronted Arbery.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation released a statement to confirm it was looking at the video, which was taken just moments before Arbery was killed, in a statement Saturday afternoon. The statement reads: "There are reports circulating of additional video footage being reviewed by the GBI as a part of the Ahmaud Arbery murder investigation. We are indeed reviewing additional video footage and photographs as part of the active case. It is important to note that this footage was reviewed at the beginning of the GBI investigation and before the arrests of Gregory and Travis McMichael."
Lee Merritt, Ben Crump and Chris Stewart, the lawyers representing the Arbery family, also released a statement in regard to the video. They stated, "Our office has reviewed the surveillance video which appears to show a person, believed to be Ahmaud Arbery, entering a property under construction. The individual remains on the property for under 3 minutes before continuing to jog down the road.
"This video is consistent with the evidence already known to us. Ahmaud Arbery was out for a jog. He stopped by a property under construction where he engaged in no illegal activity and remained for only a brief period. Ahmaud did not take anything from the construction site. He did not cause any damage to the property. He remained for a brief period of time and was not instructed by anyone to leave but rather left on his own accord to continue his jog."
The statement continued, "Ahmaud’s actions at this empty home under construction were in no way a felony under Georgia law. This video confirms that Mr. Arbery’s murder was not justified and the actions of the men who pursued him and ambushed him were unjustified. We reiterate, Ahmaud Arbery did not take part in ANY felony, had no illegal substances in his system, was not armed yet was shot three times with a shotgun at close range."
