ROCHESTER — A new suspect has been identified in a Fulton County attempted murder case from 2023.
Jared Adrian Johnson, 22, South Bend, is charged with attempted murder, a level 1 felony; robbery, a level 5 felony; and criminal recklessness committed with a deadly weapon, a level 6 felony.
Bryce James Turner, 18, of 310 Pontiac St., Rochester, is a known suspect in this case and currently has several pending robbery charges stemming from this incident.
At 7:56 p.m. Oct. 11, 2023, Rochester Police officers responded to a report of shots fired at Rumors Nite Club. Officers received information about two pedestrians shooting at a vehicle that left the establishment prior to officers' arrival.
According to court documents, officers spoke with two men who were in the vehicle at the time of the shooting. The men told officers they were in a vehicle with a woman and were waiting to go into Rumors when they were approached by Turner and another man, later identified as Johnson.
They said Johnson repeatedly stated "Give me the money" while pointing a black handgun at all three of them multiple times. The woman put the vehicle in reverse, knocking Turner and Johnson down in the process.
As they were driving away, the three individuals heard two gunshots aimed in their general direction. One of the men said he was unsure why he and his friends were targeted by Turner and Johnson.
Two witnesses said they saw two men approach the vehicle in the Rumors Nite Club parking lot and heard two gunshots.
About two hours after the incident at Rumors, RPD received a report about a man being "jumped" by two men. The man said one of the suspects had a knife and that he was injured during the incident. He told police the men robbed him, taking $30 in cash from his wallet and fleeing on foot.
Officers noticed the man had lacerations to his left arm and knuckles. The man said one of the suspects, whom he described as African American, attempted to stab him in the abdomen. The man said he blocked the stabs with his arm. During the robbery, the man fought back and punched one of the suspects multiple times.
When describing the circumstances of what occurred, the man said he was dropped off at his residence when he heard footsteps running toward him. One of the suspects, who he said was white, grabbed him by the hood of his jacket and pulled him toward the ground.
Tyree M. Cox was initially identified as the second suspect, but it was unknown if Cox was truly involved, as the second individual was wearing a black ski mask at the time of the incident.
Ultimately, charges against Cox were dismissed in October 2024.
One of the victims said he believed the second suspect had been Cox, but was not positive. He believed it was Cox because Cox regularly hung out with Turner.
A Rochester detective conducted further interviews with the people in the vehicle at Rumors. One of the men in the vehicle said since this incident occurred, he was told it wasn't actually Cox who was involved and that it was a man from South Bend.
The woman in the vehicle said she was meeting with Turner to sell him marijuana and that Turner requested to meet at Rumors. She told the detective she did not know anyone else would be accompanying Turner. The woman said she doesn't know Cox and only thought he was the second suspect at the time because one of the men in the vehicle said it was Cox.
Turner also said he wanted to speak with an officer about the case regarding Cox not being involved. He provided law enforcement with information on a Facebook profile identified as "Jmoney," who was later identified as Johnson. Turner said Johnson was the individual who was with him during the incident.
In interviews with police, Turner said he met Johnson in South Bend through a friend of Cox's. He said they came to Rochester to try to sell THC vapes in order to make money.
Turner said he set up a deal via social media to purchase about a quarter pound of marijuana from the woman in the vehicle. He agreed to pay the woman about $400 and he and Johnson walked together to Rumors. Turner said he knew Johnson had a firearm with him, but that they had not pre-planned the robbery.
Turner alleged Johnson began telling the woman to show him the marijuana while the woman said she wanted to see the money first. Johnson then pulled out his firearm and leaned into the woman's vehicle. That led the woman to put her vehicle in reverse, knocking both Turner and Johnson down with her open car door.
Turner then heard two gunshots and saw Johnson had shot twice at the woman's vehicle. He also said Johnson was wearing a black ski mask at the time.
Turner told police he and Johnson didn't really talk about what happened afterward, but mentioned telling Johnson it was "bs" that he was letting Cox take the blame for his crimes. Johnson allegedly told Turner to "lay low for a while about it."
Officers spoke with Johnson in South Bend on Oct. 24, 2024. Johnson told officers he had no knowledge of the incident and had never been to Rochester before. He also said he didn't know who Cox or Turner were.
A Facebook account belonging to Johnson showed he has been friends with Cox since September 2023, and with Turner since Oct. 10, 2023. A search warrant for the account also showed Johnson was the one who sent friend requests to Cox and Turner.
About two hours after the shooting, Johnson sent a group Facebook message to multiple people asking for help with getting out of Rochester.
Numerous additional conversations showed Johnson attempting to sell a firearm.
Officers also obtained a search warrant for Turner's Facebook account and found messages where Turner discussed Cox not being involved in the shooting.
A picture of Turner, Cox and Johnson together at a location in Rochester was also found during the warrant.
Law enforcement also spoke with a female friend of Turner's about the shooting. She said she and Turner met Johnson about a week before the shooting. The woman also positively identified Johnson after being shown a group picture.
Johnson was booked in the Fulton County Jail on Jan. 28, 2025.
Turner has a pretrial conference for his involvement in these incidents on Tuesday, Feb. 4, in Fulton County.