Nyquarious Gates, 22, was shot dead at the Wood Glen Apartments on North Cary Street in LaGrange, Georgia, on the evening of March 25, 2026. First responders found Gates bleeding around 8:45 p.m.; he was taken to WellStar West Georgia Medical Center and pronounced dead from a single gunshot wound to the chest. He did not live at the complex.

Family members say Gates had been with a group when he saw a 12-year-old boy playing with a loaded handgun and told the child to put it down. As the child was complying, the gun discharged and struck Gates. The LaGrange Police Department described the shooting as a tragic accident, saying the child never intended to harm Gates.

Two people were taken into custody. The 12-year-old was charged with involuntary manslaughter and possession of a firearm by a minor. Nineteen-year-old Azion Dakevion Avery was arrested after police determined the 9mm pistol belonged to him and had been reported stolen; he faces charges including furnishing a firearm to a minor, reckless conduct, theft by receiving a stolen firearm, making false statements, and felony involuntary manslaughter.

Gates, known as Ny-Ny, was a LaGrange High School graduate; his mother called him an angel on Earth who loved people and disliked guns. Does anyone have information about that evening or the people who were at the Wood Glen Apartments?