In the late afternoon of September 17, 2022, a 17-year-old male from Pooler, Devoin Bates-Carrington, was found with gunshot wounds on the 1200 block of E. 71st Street in Savannah, Georgia. Emergency services responded to the scene around 3:30 p.m. and transported him to Memorial Medical Center, where he ultimately succumbed to his injuries. Investigators with the Savannah Police Department quickly determined that the shooting was not a random act of violence.
The investigation into the
death of Devoin Bates-Carrington led to the identification of two suspects, J.T. Sidney Deloach, 18, and Johnathan Yusef Hameed Abdullah. On November 2, 2022, Deloach was located and apprehended in Hinesville by the Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force. He was subsequently charged with murder and four counts of aggravated assault in connection with the fatal shooting.
Court proceedings revealed that the incident stemmed from a drug deal that escalated into a robbery. Evidence presented indicated that Deloach and Abdullah had brought a gun to the transaction, which led to a physical altercation. During the struggle, Deloach shot Bates-Carrington. In September 2025, J.T. Sidney Deloach was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole for felony murder. Johnathan Yusef Hameed Abdullah entered into a negotiated guilty plea, which resulted in most of the charges against him being dropped. He received five years of probation for gun and drug possession charges.
