Updated: Deputies arrest a Macon ‘person of interest’ connected to death of a 3-year-old

The Bibb County Sheriff’s Office says a suspect has been arrested and charged in the death of a 3-year-old which happened Monday.

Deputies on Tuesday identified John Paul Battle Jr. as a “person of interest.” They announced later Tuesday that Battle turned himself in.

“He was transported to the Bibb County Law Enforcement Center,” the sheriff’s office said. “John Battle Jr. faces charges of Homicide by Vehicle/Leaving the scene.”

Investigators identified the victim of the traffic collision as Royal Rhoades, county Coroner Leon Jones told The Telegraph Monday.

The child was reported missing from a hotel on Riverside Drive about an hour before he was found dead.

A press release from the sheriff’s office spelled Rhoades’ last name as Rhodes, but Coroner Leon Jones and the victim’s grandfather Eddie Rhoades spelled it as Rhoades.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

This story was originally published October 15, 2024 at 1:58 PM.