MACON, Ga. — The Bibb County Sheriff's Office is investigating after an officer-involved shooting on Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard near Cherry Street early Sunday morning.
According to a release from the sheriff's office, Deputy Jeremiah Moneypenny was speaking with an employee outside of the downtown nightclub Late Nite around 1:47 a.m.
Bibb County Sheriff, David Davis, says Moneypenny is a 9-year veteran of law enforcemcent. He says The Macon Police Department hired him in 2011 and he became part of the Bibb County Sheriff's Office during consolidation.
Davis says says a man was seen running from the corner of Cherry Street, headed south on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
A short time later, a second man rounded the corner with a gun. The armed man shot a couple of rounds into the air as he was chasing the other man, the release says.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation identifies the armed man as 29-year-old Benjamin Bivins.
Deputy Moneypenny attempted to make contact the with Bivins, and a foot chase began.
Witnesses say he shot at the deputy as they ran towards the alley at Mulberry Street Lane, according to the release.
The sheriff's office says Moneypenny shot Bivins and aprehended him in the Mulberry Street Lane alley. He was taken to the hospital and is in stable condition.
According to Lieutenant Sean DeFoe, the GBI will be involved, as is standard with any officer-involved shooting.
Internal Affairs for the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office will carry out their own investigation as well. The release says Moneypenny will be placed on administrative leave for the time being.
After initial investigation, Sheriff Davis says he thinks the deputy acted appropriately.
"There were a lot of people out and about in that part of town, so the deputy had to step up to protect them and to protect himself, and to put an end to that behavior," says Davis.
Davis says they're still looking into what started the incident, but they think it began at the Hummingbird bar when two men got into an argument.
Investigators haven't confirmed who the other man involved is, and are asking him to come forward and give a statement about what happened Sunday morning.
Anyone with information can call the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office at 478-751-7500 or Macon Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-877-68CRIME.
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