Autopsy finds Ahmaud Arbery was hit by 3 shotgun blasts

25-year-old wounded in wrist, suffered 2 fatal shots to chest, autopsy finds

An autopsy report found Ahmaud Arbery was hit by three shotgun blasts -- one on his right wrist and two in his chest.

As first reported by TMZ and the Associated Press Monday, the autopsy was conducted Feb. 24, the day after Arbery’s death, and found that he died from the two shotgun wounds to his chest.

One of the chest wounds was from left to right, the other appeared to have traveled upward, according to the report.

Blood tests for drugs and alcohol in Arbery’s system came back negative.

READ: Autopsy report (Warning: includes graphic details) | Toxicology report (drugs) | Toxicology report (alcohol)

Arbery was fatally shot Feb. 23 by two men who told police they chased him because they believed he matched the appearance of a burglary suspect caught on surveillance video. Gregory McMichael, 64, and his son, 34-year-old Travis McMichael, were arrested last week, more than two months later, after video of the shooting in Glynn County appeared online and provoked outrage. Three gunshots can be clearly heard on that video.

The autopsy report surfaced as Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr appointed Cobb County District Attorney Joyette Holmes to take over the case.

RELATED | Man who recorded the Ahmaud Arbery shooting has been receiving threats, attorney says

Attorneys for Arbery’s parents and others, including Carr and the Southern Poverty Law Center, have asked for a federal investigation to weigh whether hate crimes charges should be brought.

Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said in a statement: “We are assessing all of the evidence to determine whether federal hate crimes charges are appropriate.”

She said the department is also considering Carr’s request to look into how local police and prosecutors handled the case.

"The attorney general in Georgia has asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate what happened in Brunswick. They want to know, have the U.S. Department of Justice investigate what the office.


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