Three Teenagers and 22-Year-Old Charged After 15-Year-Old Boy Calls His Mother to Say He Had Been Shot

A heartbreaking phone call from a dying teenager to his mother became one of the most devastating details in the investigation into the killing of 15-year-old Austin Payne in Georgia. Now, four people, including three teenagers, have been charged with murder.

Payne was found dead inside an abandoned residence in Albany, Georgia, on November 1, after his mother tracked his cellphone when he failed to return home following Halloween night.

According to police, the teenager had managed to call his mother after being shot, telling her that he had been wounded and needed help.

Albany Police Chief Michael Persley confirmed that Payne had contacted his mother during the incident. However, she initially did not realize the seriousness of the situation, reportedly believing he might have been joking because of previous comments he had made.

When she could no longer reach him, she became increasingly worried and used cellphone location tracking to find him. The signal led her to an abandoned property on Cameo Lane, where she discovered her son’s body.

Investigators subsequently reviewed surveillance footage, cellphone records and witness statements to reconstruct what happened that night.

According to information reported by local media, surveillance footage showed a group of six people walking toward the building at approximately 7:35 p.m. A little over 20 minutes later, someone wearing a hoodie and shorts was seen jumping out of a window.

Witnesses told investigators that an armed group had approached the people walking with Payne, demanded their belongings and opened fire. Authorities also recovered seven shell casings from the scene.

Investigators are examining whether Payne was targeted in an attempted robbery involving a handgun he had recently displayed on social media. That possible motive has been reported by local outlets, but the full circumstances remain under investigation.

On November 8, Albany police announced that four suspects had been arrested and charged in connection with the teenager’s death. They include 22-year-old Detravion Parke, two 15-year-olds and one 16-year-old. All four face murder charges and were taken to the Dougherty County Jail.

The arrests have brought a major development in the case, but they cannot undo the loss suffered by Payne’s family.

According to a family fundraiser, Austin would have celebrated his 16th birthday on November 12, just days after his death. He is survived by his mother and his 17-year-old sister.

A relative described the family’s struggle to process the tragedy and appealed for help with funeral expenses.

The Albany Police Department has urged anyone with information about the shooting to contact investigators as they continue working to establish exactly what happened.

For Payne’s mother, the tragedy began with a son who did not come home after Halloween. It ended with the discovery of his body and the knowledge that he had called her for help after being shot.

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