In the late afternoon of November 30, 2023, the quiet of a Statesboro, Georgia neighborhood was shattered by gunfire. Antawan Derell Strickland, a 39-year-old man, was found lying in the driveway of a residence on Success Court with multiple gunshot wounds. Emergency services were called to the scene at approximately 3:15 p.m., and Strickland was rushed to East Georgia Regional Medical Center in critical condition.
Despite the efforts of medical personnel, he succumbed to his injuries.
The Statesboro Police Department immediately launched a homicide investigation. Detectives processed the scene for hours, believing the shooting was a witnessed event and appealing to the public for any information that could lead to the person responsible. Their investigation quickly pointed to a suspect, and the following day, arrest warrants were issued for 19-year-old Anthony Jermail Johnson of Statesboro. He was charged with Murder and Aggravated Assault. Authorities reached out to Johnson's family, urging them to convince him to surrender.
Despite the active warrants and the efforts of law enforcement, including the U.S. Marshals Service Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force, Johnson managed to evade capture. For months, he remained at large. The investigation into Strickland's death took a dramatic and final turn on February 12, 2024. On that day, Anthony Jermail Johnson was killed in a separate incident at the Cambridge at the Pines apartment complex. According to the police investigation into that event, Johnson was involved in a drug transaction with three other individuals when he became angry, produced a firearm, and shot at them, injuring two. The occupants of the car returned fire, fatally wounding Johnson.
Following the death of the sole suspect in Antawan Strickland's murder, the Statesboro Police Department announced the closure of the case. They informed Strickland's family that the investigation was cleared due to the death of the offender. While no charges are expected against the individuals involved in the shooting that killed Johnson, authorities indicated that other charges related to the drug activity discovered during that investigation could be forthcoming.
