A DeKalb County jury found a man guilty of murder after a friend was shot outside a Stonecrest sports bar. Prosecutors say the fight started over a $1,600 loan and ended with eight shots in a parking lot.
🗞️ What’s Happening: According to the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office, a jury found Shiva Vereen guilty of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, and having a gun during a felony in the shooting death of Andrew Carpenter. Judge Alan C. Harvey sentenced Vereen to life in prison, plus five years.
🧾 Between The Lines: The District Attorney’s Office says text messages showed bad blood over an unpaid $1,600 loan. During trial, Vereen said he acted in self-defense and that he blacked out during the shooting.
⏱️ Catch Up Quick: Prosecutors and police outlined this timeline.
- DeKalb County police say officers went to a sports bar on Evans Mill Road around 3:15 a.m. on February 13, 2023, and found Carpenter dead in the parking lot with several gunshot wounds.
- Surveillance video, cited by the District Attorney’s Office, shows Vereen got to the bar at 2:30 a.m. and confronted Carpenter inside. The two went outside and sat together in Carpenter’s sport utility vehicle for about 40 minutes.
- After they got out, prosecutors say Carpenter stood by the vehicle drinking and talking with friends. Vereen walked to his car, grabbed a gun, came back, and shot Carpenter eight times, then drove off.
- Three weeks later, authorities arrested Vereen in Texas on the DeKalb murder warrant after a traffic stop for a fake dealership tag, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
- In court, Vereen said Carpenter pulled a gun and threatened Vereen’s family while they sat in the vehicle. Jurors rejected his self-defense claim.
🧑⚖️ What’s Next: Vereen, who was convicted of killing Carpenter, begins a life sentence. Appeals are possible.
