On the morning of September 3, 2025, a dispute between coworkers at the Aludyne-Columbus Foundry on Northside Industrial Boulevard in Columbus, Georgia, ended with Lawrence Mitchell Perry shot and fatally wounded. Perry, 54, was taken to a nearby hospital in a private vehicle but later died of his injuries.

Lawrence Mitchell Perry, known as Mitch, was born April 12, 1971. Employed at the foundry since March 2010, he was described as a devoted father and grandfather and a 1989 graduate of Central High School who ran track and played football in his youth.

Columbus Police Department’s Violent Crimes Unit identified a suspect, 32-year-old coworker Walter Bethune, who was located in Smiths Station and booked into the Lee County jail pending extradition to Columbus on a murder charge. The investigation is ongoing.

Did anyone who worked at Aludyne-Columbus Foundry or knew Mitch see anything that morning or have information about the dispute?