Charges against suspects in Macon 4th of July shooting upped to murder.

The charges against 24-year-old Michael Winston Burney and 19-year-old Dontavius Anquan Jackson were escalated to felony murder after a man they are suspected of assaulting on July 4 died of his injuries, the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office said in a Wednesday news release.

Burney and Jackson allegedly shot 24-year-old Contrel Dixon on Sparkle Avenue on the evening of July 4. Dixon was taken to the hospital and was in critical but stable condition at the time.

Jackson and Burney were arrested on July 10 during a traffic stop on Bloomfield Road. The men allegedly attempted to flee but were quickly apprehended by law enforcement. Police said they removed multiple firearms from the men’s vehicle, including two that had been stolen.

The two men were initially charged with five counts of aggravated assault. Jackson had also been wanted in Bibb and Henry counties.

The sheriff’s office previously confirmed that Dixon died in hospice care earlier this month, long after the Fourth of July altercation. He had been shot in the abdomen while in an east Macon home.

Both men were being held without bond Thursday, the sheriff’s office said.

Deputies and the coroner’s office initially spelled Contrel Dixon’s name incorrectly, according to his mother, Demetria Dixon.

This story was originally published October 30, 2025 at 4:59 PM.