COLUMBUS, Ga. — A Georgia family is searching for answers after a man was shot and killed in front of his fiancée and two youngest children.
William Tatum, 40, was shot and killed in his Columbus home over the weekend.
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His fiancée told WTVM that Tatum, known affectionately as Bam, had just picked up food for family movie night, and was on his way home.
She says that when he arrived, he was being held at gunpoint by two masked men.
“I just heard them say, ‘If you don’t open the door, you know we will kill him,’” she said.
She said she proceeded to let them into the home.
“I opened the door and let them in because there’s nothing in my home, you know. It’s just me and my kids,” she said.
She said that even in his last moments, Tatum was trying to save his family.
“He told me no. I heard him say, ‘Kill me.’ He was trying to protect us,” she said.
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Tatum’s sister, Falana Brown, remembered him as someone with a big smile who could make you laugh instantly.
“If you knew him, he was funny, silly, laid back, cool, cool. My brother been cool his whole life. His whole life,” said Brown.
His fiancée says Tatum’s killers did not get away with anything from the home.
“You just took an innocent life for no reason, away in front of his kids, and took my best friend away,” she said.
Tatum leaves behind four children.
Police have not made any arrests.
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