Warner Robins police officer injured, man dead after armed standoff at Galleria Mall in Centerville
Suspect opened fire after officers attempted contact in mall parking lot
UPDATE (8/8/2025 AT 2:51 p.m.) The victim has been identified as 37-year-old Michael Dewayne Bell of Fitzgerald, Georgia, according to Coroner James Williams.
Bell was pronounced dead at the scene. His body will be sent to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab for an autopsy.
Next of kin has been notified.
UPDATE (8/8/2025 at 1:45 p.m.) According to the Centerville Police Department, a Warner Robins Police officer was injured Thursday morning after a suspect opened fire during a confrontation in the parking lot of Crunch Fitness.
They say officers were dispatched to the scene at the request of the Byron Police Department to investigate the driver of a tractor-trailer who was believed to be involved in a domestic altercation. When they located the truck in the mall parking lot, officers knocked on the side of the vehicle and identified themselves as police. The suspect refused to comply and, at some point, opened fire, wounding a Warner Robins officer.
Officers returned fire, secured the area, and maintained the perimeter until SWAT units arrived.
No further details have been released, and Centerville Police say all updates will come from the GBI.
UPDATE (8/8/2025 at 9:45 a.m.) One man is dead after a standoff with law enforcement early Friday in the parking lot of the Galleria Mall, according to Houston County Coroner James Williams.
Williams said the man, whose identity has not been released, died from a gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene. It is not yet known if the wound was self-inflicted or the result of an officer-involved shooting.
The body will be sent to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab for an autopsy. The GBI is investigating.
No further information has been released.
ORIGINAL (8/8/2025 at 7:46 a.m.)
WARNER ROBINS, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT-DT) – According to a release sent by the Warner Robins Police Department this morning at 5:30 am, authorities are responding to an active incident in the parking lot of the Galleria Mall in Centerville, Georgia.
Officers are negotiating with an armed individual, working to safely resolve the situation and encourage the subject to surrender. Officials are urging the public to avoid the area while the response is ongoing.
No further details have been released at this time.
Stay with 41NBC for updates.
