Augusta, GA
2020 Augusta barbershop double slaying suspects found guilty
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The District Attorney’s Major Crimes Division announces the guilty verdict in the November 2020 Eve Street barber shop double murder.
Kazarie Middleton, 21, of Augusta, and Cortez Berry, 27, of Augusta, have been found guilty on all counts, to include malice and felony murder, according to the district attorney’s office.
The third co-defendant, Marquise Harris, is set to plead guilty, officials say.
The men will be sentenced Friday, May 31 at 9:30 a.m. by Judge Amanda Heath. The minimum sentence on Murder is Life Imprisonment.
Officials also say the case was tried by Assistant District Attorney Justin Mullis of the Special Victims Unit. He was assisted at trial by co-counsel ADA Dre’Kevius Huff.
Support for the victims’ families was provided by Victim Advocate Shelly Blaisdell. The week-long trial ended moments ago with the jury’s decisive verdict.
Meguel Freeman, of Augusta, was 48 years of age. Wyman Scott, of Augusta, was 34 years of age.
They deserved better than the senseless violence that claimed their lives. Their families deserved better. Our community deserves better. Your District Attorney’s Office will continue fighting to make this a safer place to call home,” District Attorney Jared Williams says.
A third suspect has been arrested in the Nov. 23 shooting deaths of two men at a barbershop in a crime that rocked Augusta’s Harrisburg neighborhood.
Cortez Bernard Berry was arrested Wednesday, according to Richmond County jail records.
He faces two counts of murder, a count of possession of a firearm or knife during a crime, criminal attempt and parole violation.
Two suspects had already been arrested in connection with the slayings at Johnson’s Beauty & Barber Salon, 706 Eve St.
The slayings left the community in mourning and served as wake-up call to a deadly crime wave across the CSRA.
The big break in the Augusta case came in mid-December, according to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office. That’s when investigators learned the identities of three suspects.
Investigators arrested and charged Marquise Harris and Kazarie Middleton, both 18-year-old Augusta residents, with two counts of murder, criminal attempted armed robbery and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, according to the sheriff’s agency.
A third suspect — Berry — remained at-large until Wednesday.
The bodies of the victims, Meguel D. Freeman, 48, and Wyman K. Scott, 34, both of Augusta, were found at the barbershop by a customer, who contacted authorities at 2:18 p.m. Nov. 23.
Freeman was a barber there, and Wyman was a customer.
Neighbors took the shooting hard.
“It could have been any one of us around here. It’s getting dangerous out here, especially in this neighborhood,” next-door neighbor Claude told News 12 in the days after the slaying.
It was one of the most shocking in a string of deadly crimes across the region that claimed at least seven lives and lasted into early December.
Those crimes included the late November slaying of a North Augusta man at the Seventh Lounge in Aiken and the fatal shooting of a 77-year-old in Barnwell County.
Copyright 2020 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) — The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office has made multiple arrests in a deadly shooting that left one teenager dead and another injured early Saturday morning.
According to deputies, the incident happened June 20, at approximately 12:50 a.m. in the 200 block of Warren Road, where authorities responded to reports of shots fired involving two gunshot victims.
When deputies arrived, they located two 18-year-old men from Augusta.
Officials identified the victims as Eric Markquis Bartley Miller and Joseph Lamar Thomas.
Investigators say Miller sustained at least one gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Thomas was also found with at least one gunshot wound and was transported to a local hospital for treatment.
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office says the circumstances surrounding the shooting remain under active investigation.
As of Saturday afternoon, three teenage suspects have been arrested and charged in connection with the incident.
18-year-old Dmihjay Collins, 17-year-old Tayshaun Thomas, and 17-year-old Joseph Thomas have all been arrested and charged with Murder, Aggravated Assault, and Possession of Machine Guns. They are all currently being held at the Webster Detention Center.
A fourth teenager, 17-year-old Reante Byrd was also arrested, but investigators have not linked him to the murder case. Byrd has been charged with Possession of a Pistol or Revolver by a Person Under the Age of 18. He is also being held in the Webster Detention Center.
No further details in the investigation have been released.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Students showcased drones they built during a two-week summer camp at Augusta Regional Airport on Friday.
12 junior and high school students attended the camp, where they learned to fly and build drones designed to help others.
Anderson Puryear, a student, said the camp focused on delivering small medical supplies.
“It was focused on delivering small medical supplies like an EPI pen or glucose packet for like diabetics and for people with allergies in need in the real world that could obviously help save lives, and if people are like in a place in a boat or like in the desert or in the forest where they can’t easily access those supplies it can save their lives,” Puryear said.
The airport partnered with Georgia Tech, state troopers and the Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Department for the Air Edu Summer Camp.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The 10th annual Juneteenth Augusta Festival brought families to the Augusta Fairgrounds on Friday despite the muggy heat.
Cultural and community-focused events, live music performances and food trucks were available at the celebration.
Tonia Hill, attending the Juneteenth celebration, said she loves the holiday and is supporting the community, though she acknowledged the weather conditions.
“I love Juneteenth. And I’m supporting everybody. It’s hot. It’s hot. It’s hot,” Hill said.
The festival runs until 10 p.m.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
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