A man charged in a string of shootings near Atlanta that left three people dead, including a Department of Homeland Security employee who was walking her dog, died in jail Tuesday night, authorities said.
Olaolukitan Adon Abel, 26, was found unresponsive in his cell, according to a statement from the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office. Officials provided medical treatment to the U.S. Navy veteran, but he was later pronounced dead.
The official cause of death has not been determined, but officials don’t suspect foul play, according to the office. Officials are conducting an internal review.
Adon Abel was accused of killing Prianna Weathers, 31, and DHS auditor Lauren Bullis, 40, in last week’s attack. Authorities also had been seeking an additional murder charge for Tony Mathews, 49, who died following injuries sustained during the attack.
Authorities haven’t offered a potential motive for the shootings, and it's unclear if Abel knew any of the victims, with police stating that at least one was believed to have been targeted at random.
After his passing, Abel's public defender expressed regret that he would not be able to contest the charges, which included state malice murder and aggravated assault.
“We regret that the families, friends, and colleagues of the victims may now be left without the fuller answers a public legal process might have provided about how these deaths occurred,” the public defender's statement noted.
Adon Abel had a rocky past, facing previous charges including assaulting police officers. His attorney described him as soft-spoken but noted the underlying mental health challenges that were present.
Despite his military service and citizenship granted in the U.S., reports show a troubling history that raises questions about his mental state leading up to this tragic incident.
