On a late summer evening in Clarkston, Georgia, a young man named Kamaal Mogardo, who was in his 20s, had just picked up a meal from a local eatery. The date was August 28, 2022, and as he was getting into his vehicle in the parking lot of the Halal Pizza and Cafe on North Indian Creek Drive, his life was abruptly and violently cut short. Witnesses reported that several men approached his car on foot and opened fire, shattering the evening's calm with the sound of multiple gunshots. When DeKalb County police responded to a person shot call around 7:30 p.m., they found Mogardo inside his vehicle, having been shot multiple times. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The initial investigation suggested a targeted attack. Surveillance footage from the area showed three individuals, armed with what appeared to be automatic rifles, exiting a red or maroon vehicle, running across the parking lot, and then fleeing the scene after the shooting. This brazen act in a public space sparked an intense search for those responsible.
A little over a month after the shooting, a breakthrough in the case came when DeKalb County police identified a suspect. On September 29, 2022, officers located and arrested 25-year-old Daniel Menisteab at a gas station on Memorial Drive. They were able to block his vehicle in and take him into custody without incident. Menisteab was subsequently charged with murder for his alleged involvement in Kamaal Mogardo's death.
While one arrest was made, the investigation continued as authorities believed two other individuals were involved in the fatal shooting. Information regarding the identification, arrest, or the current status of the other two suspects has not been made publicly available. The case against Daniel Menisteab is pending in the DeKalb County judicial system. The motive behind the shooting has not been released by investigators.
