Five DeKalb County Jail inmates are charged with murder in the death of David Addo-Wright.

Five murder charges filed by the GBI are accusations. They are not convictions, and FOX 5 Atlanta reported authorities have not said how Addo-Wright died or what prohibited items were involved. The file still has to go to the DeKalb County district attorney when the investigation is finished.

The GBI said in an Oct. 8, 2026 update that it charged five DeKalb County Jail inmates in the death of David Addo-Wright, 24, of Covington, Georgia. The defendants are Jayden King, 22, of Stockbridge; Treonte Brintley, 24, of Lithonia; Amir Andrews, 19, of Milledgeville; Dajuhn Bryant, 20, of Riverdale; and Messiah Hinson, 28, of Stone Mountain. Each was charged with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, tampering with evidence, and items prohibited for possession by inmates. The bureau said agents determined that King, Brintley, Andrews, Bryant, and Hinson attacked Addo-Wright inside a jail cell, resulting in his death. All five were already detained at the jail on previous unrelated charges. A stack of murder counts is what the GBI says it filed. It is not a verdict.

The GBI's original release, dated Sept. 24, said the DeKalb County Sheriff's Office asked the bureau to investigate. On Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026, deputies found Addo-Wright unresponsive in a cell with several wounds. He was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead. His body was taken to the DeKalb County Medical Examiner's Office, where an autopsy was conducted. FOX 5 Atlanta reported authorities have not released how he died or what prohibited items were involved, and that the GBI has not given a timeline of what led up to the death. CBS Atlanta reported that, at a press conference last week, the family said they had been told Addo-Wright had posted bail the day of the attack and was expected to be released shortly. That is the family's account, as the station reported it. It is not a finding about the cause of death.

DeKalb County Sheriff Melody M. Maddox said, in a statement carried by FOX 5 Atlanta, CBS Atlanta, and WSB-TV, that the sheriff's office appreciated the GBI's work, offered condolences to Addo-Wright's family, and would keep cooperating as the investigation and prosecution move forward. The GBI said the investigation is active and ongoing and that the completed file will go to the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office. WSB-TV reported the same handoff. Charges on a jail death start a prosecution. They do not decide who did what inside the cell. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.