Investigators have confirmed that the person who was shot by law enforcement officials at Atlanta-area public safety training center is 26-year-old Manuel Esteban Paez Teran. He was shot when the officers were attempting to clear the protest site.
Teran was fatally shot on Wednesday morning, informed Georgia Bureau of Investigation. He was inside a tent and did not comply with verbal commands of the officials who wanted to clear the site, the GBI further said.
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Teran allegedly fired at a state trooper, before other law enforcement officials retaliated and shot him back. Teran was slain in the attempt.
Protestors have been raising their voice against the training center for over an year by building platforms in the vicinity and camping on site. The activists claim that the $90 million project which would be built by Atlanta Police Foundation requires cutting down many trees. They have labeled it “Cop City,” which they say would be used to practice “urban warfare.”
Who was Manuel Esteban Paez Teran?
Manuel Esteban Paez Teran was affectionately called Tort by his friends, and he was amongst the group protesting to prevent the construction of the “Cop City.”
ANTIFA and certain far-left organizations have been involved in the protest since June 2021, the Daily Mail reported.
Col. Chris Wright, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Public Safety informed reporters that the trooper involved in the shooting underwent surgery and is under intensive care.
The identity of the trooper has been witheld because “because disclosure would compromise security against criminal or terroristic acts due to retaliation.”
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The GBI also added that 25 campsites were located and removed on Wednesday and mortar-style fireworks, edged weapons, pellet rifles, gas masks and a blow torch were recovered from the site.
Seven people were arrested and charged with domestic terrorism and criminal trespass with other charges pending, the GBI said. They were between the age of 20 to 34 years. None of them was a Georgia resident.