Nathaniel Mack

Nathaniel Mack, a 29-year-old Black man from Augusta, Georgia, was remembered by the mother of his three children as a kind father with a good heart. He lived in the Apple Valley apartments, and on the night he was killed, he was simply on his way home from his aunt's house.

In the pre-dawn hours of Monday, October 10, 2022, that journey was violently cut short. Around 3 a.m., Nathaniel was shot on a street across from a Circle K convenience store in the 2800 block of Peach Orchard Road. After being wounded, he managed to run into the gas station, where he collapsed and died from his injuries. The Richmond County Coroner’s Office pronounced him dead at the scene and scheduled an autopsy. His death was one of nearly 25 homicides to occur in Augusta that year amid a surge of deadly crime in the region.

The Richmond County Sheriff's Office began an investigation and, about two weeks later, asked for the public's help in identifying a person of interest. They released a description of an unknown Black male seen riding a distinctive black bicycle with a white cross beam. The individual was wearing a brown Carhartt hooded jacket, a black ski mask, black pants, and had black and white socks pulled over his New Balance sneakers.

The investigation led authorities across the state line to Aiken County, South Carolina. On October 28, 2022, Richmond County deputies, assisted by the Aiken County Sheriff's Office and its SWAT team, located the suspect at a home on Storm Branch Road in Beech Island. When deputies tried to take him into custody, a shootout erupted. The suspect fired his weapon, and deputies returned fire. An Aiken County deputy, a 48-year-old veteran of the force, was struck by a bullet in his right forearm and another in his neck area, but his bulletproof vest saved him from a more serious injury. The deputy was treated at a hospital and released to recover at home.

The suspect, who was not injured in the exchange of gunfire, was arrested. Authorities identified him as a 15-year-old male, and due to his age, his name was not initially released. He was taken into custody and held at the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) launched an investigation into the officer-involved shooting, which is standard procedure.

In April 2024, a judge ordered that the suspect, Robert McBride, now 17, would be tried as an adult. He was subsequently transferred from a juvenile facility to the Aiken County Detention Center. Following this decision, his name and photograph were made public. In South Carolina, McBride faces five counts of attempted murder, weapon possession, and possession of a stolen pistol related to the shootout with deputies.

As of April 2024, McBride remained in custody in South Carolina. He is expected to be extradited to Richmond County, Georgia, to face a murder charge for the death of Nathaniel Mack after the legal proceedings against him in South Carolina are concluded. Anyone with information concerning the case is urged to contact the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office at 706-821-1020 or 706-821-1080.