Overview
- A shirtless, barefoot man identified by police as 30-year-old Jerahn Tucker allegedly tried to grab two children at a Shell station on Delk Road, with the encounter captured on surveillance video that media outlets released.
- The mother pushed the suspect away using a gas pump while two bystanders ran from the store to help, allowing the children to get back into the vehicle safely.
- Authorities located and arrested Tucker a short distance from the station and booked him into Cobb County Jail on attempted kidnapping and simple assault (fear) charges.
- Police said a THC vape was found in Tucker’s car and a warrant records the mother telling investigators the suspect said he had a gun, but officers have not publicly confirmed recovery of a firearm.
- The case has drawn public attention to late-night safety at service stations and to civilian intervention, and investigators are continuing to probe motive and corroborate weapon-related claims.