Two Sylvania men face multiple charges, including murder, in connection with the shooting death of 30-year-old Deontre Mincey of Portal on Oct. 25.
Khalir Nickens, whom police suspect pulled the trigger, has been wanted since an arrest warrant was issued the day after the murder, turned himself in to the Statesboro Police Department Friday evening. Nickens, who is from Sylvania, is charged with murder and aggravated assault.
Also, Statesboro PD Capt. Jared Akins said in an email that Timothy Ward, of Davis Street in Sylvania, was arrested last Thursday in Effingham County by U.S. Marshals and transported back to Bulloch County. He is charged with two counts of aggravated assault, aggravated assault/party to a crime and terroristic threats and acts for his alleged role in Mincey's death.
According to Statesboro Police, the incident in question occurred shortly after 1 a.m. on Oct. 25, when shots were fired in the parking lot of 200 Lanier Drive, a commercial strip containing Cowboy's Bar and Grill and a Smoke Crave location. Upon arrival, SPD officers discovered the victim deceased on the scene from a gunshot wound.
The victim — Mincey — was quickly identified using an SPD portable fingerprint scanner.
Multiple detectives responded to the scene and reviewed video surveillance and accessed Flock tag reader data. Through the use of various technologies, forensic work, interviews and search warrants, detectives were able to quickly identify Nickens as the primary suspect, Akins said in a release from the SPD.
A felony murder warrant was issued on Oct. 26 for Nickens, also from Sylvania. Nickens remained at large and his search was "being worked by the U.S. Marshals Service," Akins said prior to Nickens turning himself in Friday.
Meanwhile, Statesboro Police Chief Mike Broadhead said Friday that Ward was "involved in the fight at Cowboys Bar and Grill that resulted in (Mincey) being murdered.
"Our contention is not that he was the trigger man in the murder, but that he set things in motion that directly led to the murder."
In his email, Akins said: "This case was investigated, and the arrests made, with the assistance of the Bulloch County Sheriff's Office, Screven County Sheriff's Office, Georgia Southern University Police Department and United States Marshals Service."
Anyone with information on the case is requested to contact Senior Det. Dustin Cross at (912) 764-9911. Submit an anonymous tip by visiting https://statesboropd.com/.