19-year-old fatally shot while eating outside a Waffle House in Georgia, police say

A former Waffle House employee was eating on the curb outside the restaurant when he was shot and killed, Georgia police say.

The 19-year-old was sitting outside a Decatur Waffle House at around 5 a.m. on Aug. 21, DeKalb County police told McClatchy News. The company said in a statement the victim was a short-term employee of the restaurant, just south of I-285 on Flat Shoals Parkway, earlier this year.

According to Fox 5, the victim was visiting a current employee at the Waffle House. She said it wasn’t too busy, so she was sitting outside with him while he was waiting for his ride. That’s when a gunman approached them, the news station reported.

“He’s full of life, he’s full of energy,” the Waffle House employee told WSB-TV. “The whole situation is just crazy, and I just pray for his family.”

The current employee said the gunman started beating the victim before shooting him, according to WSB-TV. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he died of his injuries, DeKalb police said.

Police are looking for the suspected gunman, and the investigation is ongoing, officials told McClatchy News.

“Dekalb County Police currently are investigating the fatal shooting of a short-term, former Waffle House employee who last worked for us on July 12, 2023,” said Njeri Boss, the vice president of food safety and public relations for Waffle House, in a statement to McClatchy News.

“We are cooperating fully with the investigation and direct all additional questions regarding the specifics of this incident to the police department,” Boss said.

The Waffle House is located just outside Atlanta.

This story was originally published August 21, 2023 at 3:11 PM with the headline "19-year-old fatally shot while eating outside a Waffle House in Georgia, police say."