In late hours of a Monday in November 2018, 19-year-old Francisco Dwayne Zapata was found partially outside his car at an apartment complex on Weatherly Drive in Decatur, Georgia, suffering a fatal gunshot wound to the chest. A responding officer found him without a pulse; he was pronounced dead twelve minutes after being discovered.

Investigators quickly focused on someone Zapata knew. Authorities arrested 18-year-old Maleik Woods of Tucker within days, alleging Woods had stolen $1,500 from Zapata before shooting him. Witnesses had seen the two together earlier, and cell phone evidence reportedly placed Woods near the scene around the time of the shooting. Woods was charged with murder and armed robbery.

A DeKalb County grand jury indicted Woods in January 2019 on malice murder, felony murder, armed robbery, and aggravated assault. At a November 2019 jury trial he was acquitted of felony murder based on armed robbery and the armed robbery charge, but convicted on the remaining counts including malice murder and later received a life sentence with parole eligibility. Anyone who knew Francisco or has information about that night is asked to come forward.