Suspect Arrested in Lilburn Walmart Killing

LILBURN, GA -- A suspect has been arrested in the shooting death of a security officer at a Lilburn Walmart.

Police say Boaz Anthony Fordyce, 37, was arrested in DeKalb County without incident Tuesday evening.

He faces charges of felony murder, aggravated assault and felony theft by shoplifting in the death of Jaseramie Dion "J.D." Ferguson.

Ferguson, 25, was working as a loss-prevention officer at the Walmart at 4004 Lawrenceville Hwy. in Lilburn Sunday night when police say he was shot trying to stop a man from walking out of the store with three flat-screen television sets that he had not purchased.

Police say Ferguson and another employee were trying to detain the suspect when the suspect fought back, pulling a .380-caliber pistol and shooting Ferguson.

Lilburn Police said they were able to identify Fordyce through multiple tips from the public. The tips, plus other evidence, were enough to secure a warrant for his arrest on Tuesday.

They followed leads to the Doraville area of unincorporated DeKalb County on Tuesday and learned that Fordyce was in a business nearby.

DeKalb County Police were contacted and, after they met with Lilburn officers, Fordyce was taken into custody without incident.

He is currently being held in the Gwinnett County Detention Center.

"Lilburn Police Chief Bruce Hedley wants to thank the hundreds of citizens who responded to the media’s coverage of this story," city spokeswoman Nikki Perry said in a news release. "Without this coverage and the tremendous number of tips that were provided to the investigators, this case would have been much more difficult to solve."