Here are the two teens taken in to custody tonight after a 9hr standoff #11alive pic.twitter.com/EiRQTm4PTv
— Kaitlyn Ross 11Alive (@kaitlynross1) May 13, 2014
Cutrez Johnson and Oslushla Smith were arrested and charged with murder for Michael Phillips’ death on May 3 and Alexis Malone’s death on May 10 Monday night after police removed them from the Atlanta hotel room they barricaded that afternoon.
Here’s what you need to know about Johnson and Smith:
1. A Young Woman & A Baby Were Killed in Retaliation for Phillips’ Death
(WSB TV)
Nine-month-old Kendarius Edwards was killed in his home in Dekalb County on Saturday night after 19-year-old Alexis Malone, a witness to Michael Phillips’ killing, was found dead earlier that day. DeKalb County’s public safety director said Johnson and Smith could be linked to Edwards’ death.
2. Edwards Was Shot While Hiding in a Bathroom With Three Women
Three women, ages 36, 23 and 21, were in the home at the time of the shooting and tried to shield themselves and Kendarius Edwards in a bathroom. They were fired at multiple times while hiding in the bathroom.
3. SWAT Units Rescued a 5-Year-Old Inside the Hotel Room
An Atlanta police officer carried the 5-year-old boy held in the hotel room to a cop car before releasing the boy to his grandmother. (WSB-TV)
A woman and her 5-year-old son were inside the hotel room with Johnson and Smith, but police said it wasn’t known if the woman and child were held against their will. The woman is either Johnson’s or Smith’s girlfriend and the child left the hotel room unharmed.
4. Police Are Searching for Alexis Malone’s Killer
Police are looking for Kayla Dixon, 20, who is wanted on murder charges in the death of Alexis Malone. (Handout)
Kayla Dixon, 20, is now wanted on murder charges by DeKalb police for the death of Alexis Malone, police have said. Dixon is also believed to be a witness to the Michael Phillips murder.
5. Michael Phillips Was Killed at a House Party
A witness to Michael Phillips’ murder told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
that Phillips’ was killed at a part across the street.
“The man, whose name the newspaper is withholding for fear of reprisal against him, said some young uninvited guests arrived, leading to a fight, which then got worse because, he said, ‘everybody had guns.'”