Albany police investigation continues into death of 15-year-old on Halloween night

By Alan Mauldin

ALBANY – A teenager fatally shot on the night of Oct. 31 was the youngest homicide victim of the year in Dougherty County, a shooting that the Albany Police Department is still investigating.

The department has arrested four individuals and has identified at least one other suspect in the case.

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Austin Payne, 15, was shot once in the abdomen, Dougherty County Coroner Michael Fowler said. 

Three of those who have been charged in the slaying also are teenagers.

The type of bullet that caused the fatal wound has not been determined, the coroner said. 

“They had all kinds of shell casings out there,” Fowler said. “It definitely is sad at that young age.”

The teen was found by his mother, who had gone to search for him after she could not get in contact with him on his cellphone at 10 a.m. on Nov. 1, according to Albany police reports. She reported finding her son’s body in an unoccupied apartment at 810 Cameo Lane after tracking the phone.

Payne had called her twice the previous night and in the later call told her that he had been shot and needed help, but she thought that he was not serious as he had made similar calls that were pranks, police said.

According to witnesses who were with Payne that night, a group confronted Payne about a weapon.

Two youngsters who were noticed standing near the crime scene that morning told police that they had met up with three other people on the 600 block of Sands Drive. While walking along a path between 6-7 p.m., they were approached by several people who lived in the area and one of them demanded that Payne hand over a firearm. The weapon had been posted online prior to the encounter. 

At that time they ran, with Payne becoming separated from them, and went to a Halloween party.

Video footage showed activity at 810 Cameo Lane, including six people, including Payne, walking toward the address, police said. The video showed one person leaving the apartment through a window shortly before 8 p.m. Payne made the second call to his mother at about 8:03 p.m. during which he said he had been shot.

Jansquincey Donaldson and Omari Marion, both 15, Adarious Wallace, 16, and 22-year-old 

Detravion Parker have been charged with murder in the slaying.

In a Facebook post, police identified Lametrious Sear as a suspect in the case.