INTRUDER SHOT AND KILLED IN PIKE CO. SUNDAY

Pike County Sheriff’s Investigators have been working through the night to piece together the shooting that occurred at 349 Bates Road. The homeowner , Roger Prater, and his adult son , Nathan Prater, saw an an individual unknown to them on their property.

They walked over to speak with the person to inquire what he was doing on the property. The person , later identified as Darrell Brown, 45 years of age, stated that he was looking for a way off of Mr. Prater’s land. No explanation was given by Brown as to why he was at the location. When Brown was shown a gate that he could leave through he pulled out a handgun and shot at Nathan Prater multiple times striking him once.

Nathan Prater did have a rifle with him and was able to return fire on Brown. He was hit and collapsed a short distance away after trying to run away from the area. It appears that one shot was fired by Mr. Prater.

Both people were transported for medical treatment. Brown later died of his injuries at the hospital. Nathan Prater’s injuries were non-life threatening. An autopsy will be performed by the GBI medical examiner on Brown.

Through the investigation it was determined that Brown had been visiting a residence in the area prior to this incident. Brown had shown another person the handgun he had with him. The witness told investigators that he knew Brown was a convicted felon and shouldn’t have it. It was at this time for an unknown reason that Brown walked away from the witnesses house and ended up on the Prater property. It does not appear as either party knew each other.

A truck driven by Brown was recovered by investigators from the witnesses home. An additional firearm was taken into evidence from this vehicle. It was also discovered that the U.S. Marshals office had an active arrest warrant for Brown in regards to a probation violation.

Once completed the investigative case file will forwarded to the District Attorney’s office for review. At this time it is believed that Mr. Prater acted in self defense to protect himself and other family members.