Family of Justin Tucker speaks after Sandy Springs murder arrests

Uncle honors man killed in Sandy Springs shooting

The family of a man shot and killed at a Sandy Springs apartment complex earlier this week is speaking out following the arrest of two suspects.

SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. - The family of a man shot and killed at a Sandy Springs apartment complex earlier this week is speaking out following the arrest of two suspects.

What they're saying:

Robert Destin, the uncle of 29-year-old Justin Tucker, says the family is shaken but relieved that arrests were made quickly. Destin described his nephew as a man who lived to encourage others and care for those around him.

"I just looked through my text messages that me and him had and it's just scrolls and scrolls of him encouraging me and I'm the uncle, and he's telling me how proud he is of me," Destin said. "He loved his family he loved his mother, his mother was everything. You know he just wanted to be able to take care of us and take care of the people around that he."

Destin said knowing the suspects are in custody provides the family a sense of security.

"It definitely gave us as a family comfort knowing that these guys are off the streets. We don’t know what they could do to someone else, we don’t know what their intentions were," he said.

What we know:

Sandy Springs police arrested 26-year-old Derrick Washington and 20-year-old Mason Washington in connection with the fatal shooting. Both men are behind bars and charged with murder for the incident that happened Tuesday at the Hudson Northridge Apartments.

RELATED: Second brother arrested after deadly Sandy Springs shooting

What we don't know:

Authorities have not released a specific motive for the shooting, though Destin noted that the violence appeared to escalate from an initial argument.

Local perspective:

Destin said the tragedy of his nephew’s death extends beyond his own relatives, affecting the families of the accused as well. He called for a change in how people handle conflict.

"So, they have mothers and fathers who are going to be affected or maybe daughters and sons, so the whole community is affected when these types of things happen," Destin said. "It's just unfortunate these days we’ve got to resort to this type of violence... we need Jesus more than anything in these conversations."