25-year-old clerk beaten to death with hammer in gas station attack, Georgia cops say
A store clerk was bludgeoned to death with a hammer inside an Atlanta-area gas station, Georgia police told news outlets.
Now, the man accused of attacking him faces a murder charge.
Officers got a call around 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 16, about an assault at a Chevron gas station in Lithonia, according to DeKalb County police.
They arrived to find the suspect standing over the victim, 25, while holding a hammer, police said in an incident report obtained by McClatchy News.
Officers ordered the man to put down the weapon, and he complied before being arrested. During a search, police found three other weapons on him — including another hammer, according to the report.
The 25-year-old clerk died at the scene.
The incident report detailed the grisly scene, including a “substantial amount of blood spatter” on the floor of the convenience store. Investigators said another clerk who witnessed the attack hid in a back room and was so shaken he “could hardy speak.”
Officers obtained store surveillance video that showed the suspect, later identified as Julian Faulkner, repeatedly hitting the victim with a hammer, WSB-TV reported, citing police.
Authorities are still investigating a motive for the attack.
Faulkner remained in custody at the DeKalb County Jail as of Jan. 17, online records show.
Lithonia is about 20 miles east of downtown Atlanta.
This story was originally published January 17, 2024 at 5:22 PM with the headline "25-year-old clerk beaten to death with hammer in gas station attack, Georgia cops say."