Brookhaven Police Drone First Responder Orchestrates Capture of Fleeing Felon

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Brookhaven, GA. May 25, 2022 –

On May 24, 2022, Brookhaven Police Department arrested Alton Johnson (27) and Shyquan Collins (30) 
who were wanted in a violent armed robbery that occurred in Charlotte, NC earlier in the day. 
Officers were alerted by a nearby license plate reader of a felony vehicle in the area of N Druid 
Hills Rd & Buford Hwy.  The alert also stated the occupants were potentially armed.  Officers 
learned after the arrests that Johnson was accused of shooting the victim in the Charlotte armed 
robbery before fleeing to Georgia.

An Officer quickly located the vehicle parked in the CVS parking lot located at 2910 Buford Hwy 
with a male subject standing outside of the vehicle.  An officer gave verbal commands and Johnson 
was detained in handcuffs.  Within seconds of locating the vehicle, the Brookhaven Police Drone 
First Responder arrived on scene and provided aerial coverage.

Officers learned of a second subject being inside the store and upon seeing an Officer, Collins ran 
to the back of the store in an attempt to evade capture.  The drone operator maintained situational 
awareness over the incident and alerted ground units when Collins ran out of the rear door.   The 
drone operator maintained visual of Collins as he ran into the woods away from the CVS and provided 
ground units with continuous updates on his position until he was successfully taken into custody.  
Collins was later found to have a warrant for his arrest out of the State of New York and further 
investigation revealed a stolen firearm inside of the vehicle.  Both Johnson and Collins were 
arrested for multiple charges and transported to the Dekalb County Detention Center.  Please refer 
to the Dekalb County Sheriff’s Office PIO for Book-in photos.

Brookhaven  Police  Chief  Gary  Yandura  said,  “This  is  yet  another  example  of  how  we  
continue  to implement state of the art technology and training to advance our mission to make 
Brookhaven safe for our residents  and visitors.”   The Brookhaven Police Department  successfully  
launched  the Drone  First Responder (DFR) program in April 2021 with the goal of providing aerial 
support and real time intelligence to first responders within seconds of being notified of an 
incident on the ground.

2665 Buford Highway
Brookhaven, GA 30324
Main: (404) 637-0600
www.brookhavenga.gov                                                                              
Gary Yandura
Chief of Police

City of Brookhaven Police Department | Public Information Office
2665 Buford Highway | Brookhaven, Georgia 30324
Phone: 404-637-0878 ▪ Email: PolicePIO@BrookhavenGA.gov ▪ www.BrookhavenGA.gov

Charges:
Alton Johnson
Possession of a firearm by a convicted felon Obstruction
Theft by receiving stolen firearm
Armed Robbery (Outstanding warrant NC)
Assault with a deadly weapon w/intent to kill (Outstanding warrant NC) Possession of a firearm by a 
convicted felon (Outstanding warrant NC)

Shyquan Collins
Obstruction
Giving false name & date of birth
Driving while license suspended
Outstanding warrant out of NY

For more information on the Drone First Responder program please visit: Brookhaven UAS Drone Program

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Media Contacts:
Sergeant Jake Kissel
Criminal Investigations Division
Brookhaven Police Department
404-637-0608 (Direct)
Jacob.Kissel@BrookhavenGA.gov