ATLANTA — Police are sharing photos of two suspects accused of trying to rob an off-duty police officer at gunpoint.
They wanted the officer’s car keys, but the officer tried to wrestle a gun out of one of the suspects hands instead.
It happened in a gated community in southwest Atlanta, but Channel 2’s Tyisha Fernandes said one of the gates is currently being left open.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
Police are investigating if this is how the suspects got in on the day of the attempted robbery.
According to witnesses, they were hanging around the laundry room for a while but never washed any clothes.
“It took a second for me to realize like, wait a minute, they are trying to rob me and carjack me,” said Officer Ray Price.
He’s been a law enforcement officer for nearly 30 years and an expert marksman. He never thought he’d be robbed at gunpoint on one of the few occasions when he wasn’t carrying a weapon.
Around 4 p.m. June 21, Price initially saw the two suspects hanging around the laundry room but didn’t think they were suspicious until they followed him up some stairs.
Police say the suspects are now wanted for attempted armed robbery.
“As soon as they got to the second-floor level and I was halfway down the stairs, the young man with the long gun was saying, ‘Hey Unk.’ And that’s when I turned around,” Price said. “He’s like, ‘Hey, let me get the keys to that BMW up off of you.’ And like I said, it took a minute because at that point in time, he was pulling out the long gun out of his waistband.”
Price decided to grab the gun. He didn’t get hold of it, but he did create an opportunity to make a run for it.
“I ran up the hill. I saw a couple of neighbors and told them like, ‘Hey, they’re trying to rob me,’” he said. “One neighbor, luckily, she had her two kids. She grabbed them and pulled them back into her apartment and she called security. My friend that was in her vehicle realized what was happening. Luckily, she had the key fob to my car as well.
“She pulled my car around, picked me up, took me to the front - in which time I was able to call Atlanta police.”
There are many cameras at the complex, which is how police got good surveillance photos.
Anyone who recognizes the suspects is asked to contact Crime Stoppers: 404-577-TIPS (8477). You could be paid at least $2,000 for your information.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
©2025 Cox Media Group
