Columbus foster girl found fatally shot in Atlanta listed as suspect in carjacking

Dennetta Franks, the 17-year-old Columbus foster girl found dead in Atlanta nearly two months ago, is listed as a suspect in an attempted carjacking along with two teens now being charged with her death.

The incident occurred on Sept. 19, which was 12 days after Franks ran away from a Holiday Inn Express at 7336 Bear Lane in Columbus. When she disappeared, she was under the 24/7 supervision of a guardian from Cedar Tree Children and Family Services, an organization responsible for juveniles awaiting placement into a home by the Department of Family and Children Services, according to police and DFCS officials.

According to an Atlanta Police Department incident report, Franks was a suspect in the carjacking, along with Wayne Bailey, 19, of Newnan; Eddie Byrd, 18, of Atlanta; and Sharelle Natalie Pollock, another teenager from Atlanta.

Atlanta police recently secured murder warrants for Bailey and Byrd in connection with Franks’ death. The two murder suspects were already in custody in DeKalb County on charges for the attempted Atlanta carjacking at 275 Mellrich Ave NE, according to Atlanta police.

On Sept. 19, police responded to a call about shots fired at the Mellrich Avenue location, according to another incident report. They found a victim in his early 40s lying in the roadway with a firearm. He had a delivery receipt for a local address from a Decatur Chinese restaurant in his possession.

The victim told police that two unknown males and two unknown females shot at him. He emptied his magazine as they were running away, he said, and police obtained information about his concealed carry permit.

As medics placed the victim in the ambulance, neighbors heard a male behind 253 Winter Ave. yelling for help and found DeJuan Adams, 18, a fifth suspect in the carjacking case, who had also been shot. Both the victim and Adams were taken to Grady Hospital in stable condition and were scheduled to have surgery.

Franks went missing from the Holiday Inn Express on Sept. 7. Three months prior, she had told police that she was raped at an apartment in north Columbus after running away from her Cedar Tree guardian in another incident, according to a Columbus police report.

On Oct. 24 and 25, Dekalb County warrants were issued for the apprehension of Byrd, Bailey and Pollock in connection with the carjacking. The report stated that Dennetta Franks had also been a suspect in the carjacking, but had been found shot dead on Sept. 21 near 1710 Hortense Place NW.

Neighbors near the Hortense Place/ Florence Place Northwest intersection in Atlanta said they heard gunshots between 5 and 5:45 a.m. on Sept. 21, but didn’t discover Franks’ body until after sunrise, according to police reports. Upon arrival, police said they found her lying in a roadway with multiple gunshot wounds.

This story was originally published November 17, 2017 at 11:43 AM with the headline "Columbus foster girl found fatally shot in Atlanta listed as suspect in carjacking."