A Columbia County sheriff's captain discovered Thursday that Miami authorities possibly misidentified a murder suspect killed in a Wednesday shoot-out with police.
The man killed had fled from police Tuesday when they tried to question him about the killing of an 18-year-old in South Beach last week. Police identified the man as Oswain Brental Walcott, 22, according to a Miami Beach Police Department news release.
Capt. Steve Morris said he got phone calls and read published reports about Mr. Walcott and was confused because the man he knows as Oswain Brentnol Walcott was sentenced to prison in May. Mr. Walcott was convicted in Columbia County for the November 2007 burglary of a Martinez McDonald's restaurant.
Capt. Morris said he confirmed with the Georgia Department of Corrections that Mr. Walcott has been incarcerated in Lee State Prison in Leesburg, Ga., since December.
"I pulled the article up online and it was obvious it is not the same person," Capt. Morris said. "So then, I contacted a homicide sergeant who is working the case in Miami Beach and e-mailed him a photograph and advised him that our Oswain is still in custody."
Miami Beach Detective Juan Sanchez said the name was associated with two active warrants for Mr. Walcott in Augusta. Richmond County sheriff's Maj. Ken Autry said the warrants are for burglary and vehicle theft from late 2007.
"Our investigation led us to believe that one of his AKAs (Also Known As) was this (Oswain Walcott) and that's who we thought it was," Detective Sanchez said. "That led up to that warrant from Augusta."
After eluding police in Miami, the man is accused of breaking into a home, holding the family hostage and committing a sexual assault. When police located the man identified as Mr. Walcott, he reportedly reached for his waistband and yelled, and police from Miami Beach and the Miami-Dade Police Department fired.
Because the shooting took place in the Miami-Dade jurisdiction, they are responsible for identification, Detective Sanchez said.
"We have not identified who the person involved is," Miami-Dade department spokeswoman Aida Fina-Milian said Thursday afternoon. "We have not released any names."
Detective Sanchez said investigators had reason to believe the man was Mr. Walcott. He used several aliases, including Oswain Walcott.
"We're not 110 percent sure he isn't (Mr. Walcott)," Detective Sanchez said. "We don't know who this individual is. We're waiting for fingerprint confirmation from Miami-Dade."
Reach Valerie Rowell at 868-1222, ext. 110 or valerie.rowell@augustachronicle.com.
The Augusta Chronicle ©2010 Morris Communications, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Condolences for his family and vistims and their families but good riddance to this animal.
"We don't know who this individual is." But we all know what "this individual" was, don't we?
Oswain Brentnol ....It makes no difference what our name is until our life style gives it meaning.
Dead is dead I wonder if they shot him between the eyes or just shot him all over? I really don't care what his name was they should get the guy in prison and shoot him too. This way they'll know they have the right one.
??????????
Send him to columbia county jail........................oh ..ah.. he is already dead...
I'm confused.
If the thug has just stopped when ordered to, he would still be alive.
Obviously not too bright.... I hope he hadn't sucessfully passed on his genes during the sexual assult before his last act of foolishness. He was probablly reaching for his waistband to pull up his saggin' pants.
What kind of idiot felon uses as his alias the name of another felon?
Maybe they are related.
They're all decendants of Cain.