The man who recorded the viral video depicting the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery is being investigated as part of the ongoing murder investigation, Buzzfeed reported Friday.
William “Roddie” Bryan is being investigated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), the law enforcement agency that secured the arrest warrants for father and son Thursday, according to Buzzfeed.
The McTravis’ were charged with murder and aggravated assault.
Former police officer Gregory McMichael, 64, and his son Travis McMichael pose for a booking photo they were arrested by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and charged with murder in the shooting death of unarmed black man Ahmaud Arbery, in Brunswick, Georgia. (REUTERS)
The cellphone video was a key piece of evidence in the investigation, and depicts both the father and son confronting Arbery as he is running down a road and then shooting Arbery, who was unarmed.
It was released the week of May 4 by Brunswick Attorney Alan Tucker. Tucker said in a statement Thursday that while his firm wasn’t representing anyone in the case, he released the video for “absolute transparency because my community is being ripped apart by erroneous accusations and assumptions,” Buzzfeed reported.
Bryan is a neighbor of the McMichaels and lives within a mile of where Arbery was fatally shot, Buzzfeed reported. He is listed as a witness in the police report.
The Glynn County police report says “‘Roddy’” attempted to block” Arbery when he tried to run back in the direction he came from after Travis McMichael attempted to cut him off in his vehicle.
“I’m very comfortable in telling you there’s more that sufficient probable cause for felony murder,” GBI Director Vic Reynolds said at a press conference Friday.
President Donald Trump said Friday that the video footage was “heartbreaking.” (RELATED: Trump: Ahmaud Arbery Looked Like ‘Really Good’ Guy, But Says There ‘Could Be Something That We Didn’t See On Tape’)
“I saw the tape and it’s very, very disturbing, the tape. I got to see it, it’s very disturbing. I looked at a picture of that young man, he was in a tuxedo, and in fact you put it up, and I will say that looks like a really good young guy,” Trump said on Fox.
Trump also said that there may have been something that happened prior that the video did not capture.
“You know, it could be something that we didn’t see on tape,” Trump said.
“There could be a lot of… if you saw things went off tape and then back on tape, but it was a troubling, I mean, to anybody that watched it, certainly it was a disturbing or troubling video, no question about that.”