COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Brake checking, a heated argument on a busy road and a driver cutting off another driver.
Cobb County police are calling a shooting that landed a man in the hospital and another in jail a classic case of road rage.
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Police arrested Bashir Beal at his home in Cherokee County on Wednesday after the shooting on Woodstock Road in East Cobb. The victim drove into Roswell after he was shot.
“It’s scary knowing someone is capable of making an impulsive decision like that, that is close to you, that’s right next door,” Tay Odoms, Beal’s neighbor, told Channel 2 Cobb Bureau Chief Michele Newell.
Investigators say a camera captured Beal and the victim driving into Cobb County from Cherokee County. Police say one driver cut off the other. It’s unclear who started it, but both men started to argue.
When they approached Mabry Road intersection, investigators say Beal pulled out a pistol and shot the victim several times.
“There was a guy in the middle of the road yelling for help. So we ran out saw he was stumbling around,” a witness told Newell.
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Officers later tracked Beal to his home in Cherokee County, where he was arrested.
"I know it shocked the neighborhood to see police come here. We don’t see police come here," Odoms said.
Beal is charged with two felonies, including aggravated assault. Investigators say he didn’t have a criminal background prior to the shooting. Newell stopped by his home, but no on answered the door.
“My partner has seen him around before, very minimal communication. She does communicate with the person that lives with him which is a woman,” Odoms said.
The victim, who hasn’t been identified, is recovering in the hospital. Investigators tell Newell they have interviewed witnesses and used cameras in the real time crime center to identify Beal’s car.
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