The Atlanta community is reeling from a tragic incident involving the death of Javon Brown, a local pipefitter, who confront the suspects trying to steal his truck and subsequently suffered a fatal heart attack. The Atlanta Police Department and Brown's family are reaching out to the public for assistance in apprehending the individuals responsible for the events leading up to Brown's untimely demise.
As reported by FOX 5 Atlanta, on Jan. 17, Brown and his wife were alerted to a disturbance outside their southwest Atlanta residence at about 4:30 a.m. They discovered intruders attempting to break into Brown's recently purchased GMC truck. Brown armed himself and went outside to confront the suspects, a confrontation ensued, during which, the suspects fired at Brown, although he was not hit by gunfire. After retreating back inside his home, Brown collapsed from what appeared to be a heart attack and later passed away.
In a similar account obtained by Atlanta News First, during a press conference, Det. Cleo McCowan urged the public to come forward with any information regarding the case, detailing how the stress from the attack led to Brown's cardiac arrest. McCowan noted that Brown had fired at the suspects - "possibly young males, dressed in all black" - before succumbing inside his home and that the suspects may also be connected to other vehicle break-ins in the area.
Tasha Brown, Javon's widow, along with their daughter, made heartfelt pleas for community support during the press conference. Tasha Brown told Atlanta News First, "Somebody knows something, and I just want to plead with you to come forward. Whatever you know, whatever you think you know, however insignificant you think it may be, it's important to me, it's important to my sons, it's important to my daughter. We just want the people responsible to pay for what they did."
The investigation continues as detectives believe the suspects are a threat to the wider community. Tasha's daughter emphasized the urgency in a statement to Atlanta News First: "These two boys walked down our driveway, almost into our home, at 4 o'clock in the morning. It could have been anybody's home, and they're not going to stop with us. As long as they are out on the street, they'll do it to your home... the crime won't stop unless somebody gets them." A reward of up to $5,000 is being offered for information leading to an arrest, and those with knowledge of the situation are encouraged to contact Crime Stoppers Atlanta or the Atlanta Police Department.
