In the early morning hours of November 22, 2024, a dispute that began inside a Marietta, Georgia restaurant tragically ended with the death of Jankar Araque Ovalles, a 36-year-old Hispanic man. The incident took place at the Costa Mar Seafood and Grill on Franklin Gateway, a place that would become the backdrop for a fatal act of violence. Ovalles had been living in Marietta for three years before his life was cut short.
The conflict is understood to have started within the restaurant
before escalating and moving out into the parking lot and the street. Shortly after midnight, Marietta police officers who were in the vicinity of the 600 block of Franklin Gateway heard a single gunshot. Their immediate search for the source of the sound led them to the discovery of a man lying wounded in a roadway lane.
The man on the ground was identified as Jankar Araque Ovalles. First responders and officers attempted to render aid to him at the scene, but his injuries proved to be fatal, and he did not survive.
The Marietta Police Department launched an investigation into the shooting, which is still ongoing. Investigators have confirmed that the altercation originated at the restaurant and spilled outside, but the specific details of what sparked the initial 'incident' have not been made public. As of late November 2024, authorities had not released any information regarding a suspect or suspects in the case, and no arrests had been announced.
