Ahmaud Arbery Shooting To Be Investigated As Hate Crime: Report

ATLANTA, GA ­— Attorneys for the parents of Ahmaud Arbery met with officials from the U.S. Department of Justice last week as to why so much time passed between when Arbery was shot and killed and arrests were made in the case.

S. Lee Merritt, the attorney representing Arbery’s parents, said that the Department of Justice is investigating the shooting death as a hate crime, CNN reported. Merritt told CNN that the meeting with Bobby Christine, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District, took place Thursday.

Arbery was shot and killed while jogging on Feb. 23. Three arrests in the case were made this month, including last week, when William “Roddie” Bryan, Jr., was arrested and charged with felony murder. Bryan is the man suspected of capturing the incident on video. Gregory McMichael and Travis McMichael were arrested on May 7.

In a statement, Merritt said he is confident that federal officials will get involved.

“This would involve the consideration both civil and criminal charges against state officials and conspirators involved in the murder of Ahmaud Arbery,” the statement read. “We left that meeting feeling satisfied that the DOJ would do their part to fully investigate all players involved in this murder and would hold those responsible accountable.”

In a statement, the Department of Justice indicated that the department, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia would will continue to support and be active in the state investigation. Last week, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced it was nearly prepared to hand the case over to Cobb County prosecutors.

“We are assessing all of the evidence to determine whether federal hate crimes charges are appropriate,” the statement from the Department of Justice reads. “In addition, we are considering the request of the Attorney General of Georgia and have asked that he forward to federal authorities any information that he has about the handling of the investigation. We will continue to assess all information, and we will take any appropriate action that is warranted by the facts and the law.”