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Man sentenced in 2017 murder of ex-girlfriend, a postal worker to life in prison

A Decatur man who was found guilty on Tuesday of shooting and killing his ex-girlfriend, a postal worker, in 2017 was sentenced Friday at 10 a.m.

DECATUR, Ga. — A Decatur man who was found guilty on Tuesday of shooting and killing his girlfriend, a postal worker, back in 2017 was sentenced on Friday. 

Quantez Tyre will spend life in prison without parole plus ten years at the DeKalb County Courthouse. 

Jurors returned the guilty verdict against the 27-year-old, charging him with two counts of felony murder, malice murder, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Tyre fatally shot his ex-girlfriend, 22-year-old Tyrika Terrell, on Nov. 27, 2017, at the Wesley Chapel Post Office in Decatur. 

Tyre and Terrell had been in a relationship for multiple years at the time of the incident, according to the investigation. Terrell gave birth to the couple's child in May of 2017 and began reporting several domestic violence incidents in the weeks following.

RELATED: Man accused of killing postal worker arrested

The reports from Terrell never ensued in any arrests being made against Tyre, authorities stated in a release. The two subsequently ended their relationship in October of 2017.

On the day Terrell was killed, Tyre began calling and texting her over and over telling her that he would be waiting for her when she left work, authorities said. Witnesses claimed they noticed Tyre hanging in the plaza, where the post office was located, just a few hours before he killed Terrell.

The report stated Terrell eventually dialed 911 from the post office to tell police that she didn't feel comfortable leaving work alone due to the fact her ex-boyfriend was waiting outside for her and asked police to come to the back of the building to escort her safely away. Police said they were given the wrong street address where the post office was located and ended up being dispatched to the wrong location.

Credit: Provided
Quantez Tyre

Officials noted that Terrell called Tyre and told him she had contacted police. Both a witness and surveillance footage later spotted the two walking to the back of the post office, where Tyre fired multiple shots at Terrell, killing her before he ran through the tree line, police said.

After paramedics arrived, she was immediately taken to Grady Hospital where she was pronounced dead from a gunshot wound to the head, according to a statement.

Tyre was arrested at a home at 1539 Snapfinger Road after a nearly two-hour standoff. The house was one of Tyre’s relatives, DeKalb County Police said. After the other occupants of the home evacuated, police said Tyre positioned himself with a weapon in an upstairs room, as they attempted to get him to surrender. 

Police said he set a fire to the second floor of the home and shots were fired. When he came out of the house, SWAT deputies surrounded him and took him into custody.  

Tyre had sustained self-inflicted gunshot wounds, according to police. He was taken to Grady Hospital and was later taken to the DeKalb County Jail.

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