New officer — father of 6-month-old — fatally shot on first shift, Georgia police say
Update Oct. 11: The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said it believes the “ambush-style attack” on officer Dylan Harrison was retaliation for the arrest of a man who is a “known associate of Damien Ferguson.”
Harrison “made contact” with the man Friday night over a traffic violation, and the man refused to give his name or identification and started arguing with Harrison, the GBI said. At one point, the GBI said the man pushed Harrison, and Harrison attempted to arrest him, discharging his taser when the man didn’t comply. The man was then arrested and taken to the Wheeler County Jail.
Update Oct. 10: The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said Sunday afternoon that Damien Ferguson, who was wanted in connection with the death of police officer Dylan Harrison, has been taken into custody.
Original story: Police in Georgia are looking for a suspect after an officer, who was a new father, was killed during his first shift with the Alamo Police Department.
Dylan Harrison, 26, of Dudley, was fatally shot outside the Alamo Police Department around 1 a.m. Saturday, Natalie Ammons, a spokesperson for the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, said during a news conference. He was a part-time officer with the police department and was working his first shift when he was killed.
He leaves behind a wife and a 6-month-old, Ammons said Saturday.
Harrison also worked full-time on the Oconee Drug Task Force in Eastman, Georgia, and had been working in law enforcement since 2018, Ammons said.
His body has been taken to the GBI crime lab for an autopsy, Ammons said.
Multiple agencies and others posted condolences online after Harrison’s death.
“Early this morning, one of our law enforcement officials in Middle Georgia was killed in the line of duty,” Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp tweeted Saturday. “Our thoughts and prayers are with this officer’s family, friends, and colleagues at the Alamo Police Department.”
“On behalf of the Milledgeville Police Department, we extend our condolences to the family and friends of Officer Dylan Harrison with the Alamo Police Department and Oconee Drug Task Force,” the Milledgeville Police Department, which is about 80 miles north of Alamo, wrote Saturday on Facebook. “Officer Harrison was shot and killed in the line of duty earlier this morning. Rest easy our brother. We’ve got it from here.”
The GBI said it has issued a Blue Alert for a suspect in Harrison’s death, identified as 43-year-old Damien Anthony Ferguson of Alamo. He is also known as Luke Ferguson, the GBI said.
“A blue alert is a public safety alert that is issued when a suspect has killed or seriously injured an officer and has not been apprehended and that may be a serious threat to the public,” Ammons said.
The GBI is offering a $17,500 reward for information leading to the arrest of Ferguson and asks anyone with information to contact the agency.
“Anonymous tips can be submitted by calling 1-800-597-TIPS (8477), at the GBI website at www.gbi.georgia.gov by clicking on Online Tip Form, or by downloading the See Something, Send Something mobile app. Search “See Send” in Apple and Android app stores,” the GBI wrote on Facebook.
No other information about the case had been released as of Sunday afternoon.
Alamo is in Wheeler County, 160 miles southeast of Atlanta and about 118 miles west of Savannah.
This story was originally published October 10, 2021 at 1:57 PM.
