By Alexis Stevens, Shaddi Abusaid and Jozsef Papp
Source The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ATLANTA—The Cobb County Sheriff’s Office on Friday identified the two men arrested after two deputies were shot to death Thursday night.
Christopher James Cook Jr. and Christopher Patrick Golden, who were both taken into custody late Thursday, are scheduled to make their first court appearances at 4 p.m. Friday, according to a spokesman for the sheriff’s office.
Golden, 30, was charged with two counts each of felony murder and aggravated assault, Cobb jail records showed. Cook, 32, was being held on six theft charges from arrest warrants dating back to June, records showed.
The names of the two deputies have not been released. They were attempting to serve an arrest warrant in a Cobb County neighborhood. Both deputies were ambushed before they could speak to their suspect, and both died from their injuries.
On Friday, overwhelming grief and sadness gripped residents and law enforcement alike as investigators attempted to piece together the string of events.
“We extend our sincere condolences and prayers to the families of the two sheriff’s deputies killed in the line of duty, the Cobb Sheriff’s Office, and the Cobb law enforcement community,” Cobb County District Attorney Flynn D. Broady, Jr. said in a statement. “This remains an open and active investigation. As such, we have no further comment at this time.”
Address records showed Cook lived at the Hampton Glen Court home. He has three outstanding warrants from this year, according to court records.
On Feb. 1, Cook allegedly sold several pieces of stolen jewelry, including a ring, bracelet, and necklace, to a pawn shop, his arrest warrant states. An arrest warrant was issued for Cook on April 11 charging him with three counts of theft by receiving stolen property, all felonies, and three misdemeanor theft charges.
In June, two additional arrest warrants were issued for Cook, charging him with two additional misdemeanor theft counts, records show.
“Said accused conducted a pawn transaction in which he received $350 cash in exchange for a 10 Kt white gold pendant chain which was property reported stolen in Cobb County … in which he was identified as the suspect who stole the property on or about 2/28/2022,” the warrant states.
In 2019, Cook and Golden were co-defendants in a misdemeanor theft case, according to court records. In April of that year, the two were accused of stealing an iPad and tools and selling the items at a pawn shop, arrest warrants state. The case remains open, according to magistrate court records.
Neighbors walking through the west Cobb subdivision were still stunned Friday as they strolled past the house where the two deputies were killed.
Several of the home’s upstairs windows appeared to have been shattered by tear gas canisters and the left garage door was completely gone. Also missing was a large window in the front of the house, giving neighbors and onlookers a clear view into the family’s dining room.
“It’s heartbreaking,” said Dana Payne, who has lived in the typically quiet subdivision for 23 years.
She and her husband, a retired Atlanta police officer, were leaving to run a few errands at about 8 p.m. Thursday they saw dozens of police cars speeding into the neighborhood with their lights and sirens blaring.
Some officers ran down the street telling people to stay inside their homes, said Payne, who walked her dog, Rylo, past the damaged home Friday.
”We knew it was something serious,” she said. “It’s really sad. It’s sad for the family of the person who shot them and it’s sad for the deputies’ families. They were just doing their job.”
Payne said she and her husband raised their two children in the neighborhood and that nothing like this has ever happened there “It’s a great place to raise a family. It’s a perfect neighborhood, really,” she said.
Doug Cunningham, who runs a trauma remediation business, spent the morning cleaning up the badly damaged home. Cunningham said he is a former FBI agent who actually lived in the subdivision in the early ‘90s. He said his son used to play with an elementary school classmate who lived in the house.
“I feel so bad for the families of those deputies,” said Cunningham, who removed entire patches of blood-stained grass from the front yard. “It’s just senseless.”
The two deputies were the fourth and fifth Georgia law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty this year.
“Marty, the girls, and I were deeply saddened to learn of the killing of these two deputies,” Gov. Brian Kemp posted on social media. “Men and women like them bravely serve our communities every day, and we owe them a great debt of gratitude. Please join us in praying for their families & fellow law enforcement officers.”
Prior to Thursday night, only one Cobb deputy had been killed in the line of duty, according to the Officers Down Memorial Page, which tracks deaths of law enforcement officers. On April 27, 1990, Deputy Sheriff Donald Terry Garrison was killed in a crash.
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