Man Who Filmed Ahmaud Arbery Shooting Charged With Murder, Attempted False Imprisonment

The man who filmed the Ahmaud Arbery shooting in February has been charged in his murder, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said Thursday.

William Bryan, a neighbor of the suspects charged with killing Arbery, was charged with murder and attempt to commit false imprisonment, the GBI said.

Bryan saw the pursuit of Arbery, who was jogging near his home in Brunswick, and followed Gregory Michael and his son Travis.

Gregory McMichael told police after the shooting that Bryan tried to block Arbery’s escape but was unsuccessful.

Both Gregory and Travis McMichael

Attorneys for the Arbery family hailed the arrest.

"The family of Ahmaud Arbery was relieved to learn that the Georgia Bureau of Investigation has taken William 'Roddie' Bryan into custody," the attorneys said in a statement. "We called for his arrest from the very beginning of this process. His involvement in the murder of Mr. Arbery was obvious to us, to many around the country and after their thorough investigation it was clear to the GBI as well."

Bryan denies involvement:

"I had nothing to do with it,” Bryan said in an interview with WJAX. “I'm trying to get my life back to normal, and it's been smeared for the last week," he said. "I was told I was a witness and I'm not sure what I am, other than receiving a bunch of threats."

His attorney said that Bryan did nothing wrong.

"My client was responding to what he saw, which was someone in the community he didn't know being followed by a vehicle he recognized," he told the outlet. "Without going into details about the level of crime in this community in this subdivision, I think most people in this subdivision were aware that there were issues."

Video shows events:

"The initial police report described his role in it," Arbery family attorney S. Lee Merritt told CNN. "The idea that he was just a witness, recording the video -- that's a recent invention. His role in this ambush was well documented in the original police report and is demonstrated by video."

 

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