Shortly after 4:20 a.m. on Sunday, January 12, 2025, shots were reported at the Magnolia Acres apartment complex in Waynesboro, Georgia. Officers first found no evidence of a shooting at the mailboxes, but a second call about 20 minutes later led them to an apartment where 36-year-old Raynard Tamario Ellison was found unresponsive with a gunshot wound to the chest. Officers performed CPR until medics arrived; Ellison was transported to Burke Health and pronounced dead at 5:42 a.m.

Investigators identified two people of interest early in the probe: Julian Titorian Bright and Ellison’s mother, Melissa Ellison. Melissa Ellison was later cleared, and Bright became the primary suspect. That same day Bright turned himself in to the Waynesboro Police Department and was arrested and charged with Murder and Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Crime. Authorities say the investigation remains active and additional charges are possible.

If anyone has information about Raynard Ellison, his movements that night, or the events at Magnolia Acres, please come forward.