The Man Who Recorded Video Of Ahmaud Arbery Being Shot Has Been Arrested On A Murder Charge

William “Roddie” Bryan Jr., 50, followed two armed white men in his own vehicle as they chased Arbery down the road.

The man who filmed the video of two white men fatally shooting an unarmed black man jogging down a road in Georgia has now been arrested, officials announced Thursday.

William “Roddie” Bryan Jr., 50, is expected to face charges of felony murder and criminal intent to commit false imprisonment in connection with the killing of 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) said.

He is the third man to be arrested in connection with the Feb. 23 fatal shooting. Gregory McMichael, 64, and his son, Travis McMichael, 34, were arrested and charged with murder and aggravated assault earlier this month after the video Bryan filmed of the Feb. 23 fatal shooting was made public.

Bryan followed the father and son in his own vehicle as they chased Arbery down the road, according to a Glynn County police report of the shooting. The McMichaels told police that they believed Arbery was a suspect in a string of break-ins in the neighborhood.

The police report said Bryan "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.

However, Bryan's attempt was "unsuccessful," the report said.

Bryan is a neighbor of the McMichaels and lives within a mile of where Arbery was fatally shot.

He is listed as a witness on the police report. However, in a press conference Friday morning, the day after Bryan's arrest, GBI director Vic Reynolds said investigators would not have arrested Bryan if they believed he was merely a witness.

"Felony murder is a crime in Georgia where if you are committing a felony crime and that crime ends up in the death of another human being, then that's a felony murder," he told reporters. "We believe the evidence would indicate that his underlying felony helped caused the death of Ahmaud Arbery."

Reynolds also said investigators have "accumulated a number of pieces of video in the case," though he declined to say what they obtained from Bryan specifically.

Officials announced they were investigating Bryan shortly after the McMichaels were arrested.

Reynolds said Friday he doesn't anticipate any more arrests in the investigation.

S. Lee Merritt, an attorney for Arbery's family, has previously referred to Bryan as a "suspect," alleging that he "conspired" with the McMichaels to kill Arbery.

In a statement on Thursday, attorneys said Arbery's family was "relieved" to learn about Bryan's arrest and thanked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation for their work on the case.

"We called for his arrest from the very beginning of this process," the attorneys said. "His involvement in the murder of Mr. Arbery was obvious to us, to many around the country and after their thorough investigation, it was clear to the GBI as well."

UPDATE

This post was updated with additional information from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation press conference Friday.

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