Arbrie Anthony Augusta Georgia 8 year old girl killed in drive by shooting while petting horses in front yard. No arrests.
An eight-year-old girl was killed in a drive-by shooting as she went to pet a horse that was passing her family’s front yard in Georgia.
Arbrie Anthony, and the horse she was petting, were killed when someone opened fire from a distinctive-looking orange Jeep just before 7.30pm on Saturday in the 2000 block of 3rd Avenue in Augusta.
Richmond County Sheriff Richard Roundtree said that he doesn’t believe the eight-year-old was the intended target, while saying the front yard was a ‘common gathering place’ for groups – and believes the drive-by was targeting one of those individuals.
He added that it ‘may have involved gangs’ or could have been a ‘retaliatory’ attack but it was too early to say.
‘These are cowards,’ the sheriff said of the suspects during a Monday press briefing. ‘No matter what your beef is, no matter what your intent is, when children are present, they get a pass… it’s always been that way.’
According to the sheriff, two horse riders had been passing by and Arbie had been petting their horses when a reddish-orange, newer model Jeep Compass Trailhawk drove by, and one or two of its occupants fired 5-10 rounds.
Arbrie was shot in the head and was transported by her father to Augusta University Medical Center, where the child was pronounced dead a short time later.
Bullets also struck one of the horses, which died the next day, and a vehicle that was parked at the scene.
The horse riders were not injured.
On Sunday, distraught family members held a candlelight vigil outside Arbrie’s home and called on the suspect to turn themselves in.
‘They took my heart,’ Arbrie’s father, Arthur Anthony, told WJBF.
Anthony said his daughter loved dancing on TikTok and enjoyed the outdoors.
‘Please come forward’
‘She was a happy child, a loving child. She loved to do stuff loved going places,’ said Arbrie’s aunt Jamila McDaniel.
During Sunday’s emotional vigil, the girl’s father appealed directly to the person or people responsible for his daughter’s death.
‘Please come forward, please speak up, please. That’s my baby,’ Anthony pleaded.
A GoFundMe campaign has been launched to help Arbrie’s family with her funeral expenses. So far, more than $21,320 has been raised.
Sheriff Roundtree revealed that the shooter or shooters fled the scene in the Jeep Compass Trailhawk featuring a broad black stripe on the hood and a moon roof.
Anyone with information on the drive-by shooting is being asked to call 706-821-1080.
Sheriff Roundtree appealed to any potential witnesses to come forward, saying that he is convinced that there are people in the community who know the shooter or shooters.
‘I am confident we’re going to solve this case,’ the sheriff said.
To date no arrests have been made.
