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Vigil held at Walmart: Memorial tribute for Area Barnett’s tragic death

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Published  May 30, 2024 11:53pm EDT
Atlanta
FOX 5 Atlanta

Vigil for Walmart worker found dead under I-285

Area Barnett, 25, was found dead under an overpass along I-285 in southwest Atlanta earlier this month. Her friends and family gathered on Thursday to remember her.

ATLANTA - Close friends and coworkers of 25-year-old Area Barnett, who was found shot to death by a movie crew earlier this month, gathered to honor her memory and call for justice on Thursday.  

For the employees of the Walmart store on Cascade Road in Atlanta, the saying "coworkers are family" is more than just words. 

"That was my work child. She was a person where to know her was to love her," said one of her coworkers and friends, Shameeka Burns. 

That’s why dozens of employees gathered at Walmart to release balloons in honor of their coworker and friend. 

Barnett was found shot dead by a film crew at Collier and Hardwell roads near the Interstate 285 overpass on May 16. 

That is where her close friends and coworkers moved the gathering to Thursday evening to continue honoring her.  

There they created a memorial with stuffed animals, balloons, candles and even her Walmart vest.  

Those gathered say she was much more than just a friend to them.  

"She was our sister, blood couldn’t make us any closer," said close friend Tabitha Hammond. 

Woman found dead near I-285 in Atlanta

Friends and coworkers of a woman shot and killed early Thursday on Collier Drive identify her as Area Barnett. She was just 25, according to the Fulton County Medical Examiner's office.

"She was one of my closest friends since I was 13. My friend, my sister, my twin. I talked to her every day," said close friend Saphirre Brown. 

Which is why they are frustrated to see that, two weeks later, Atlanta police have not made an arrest yet or even identified a potential suspect publicly.  

"I don't know why somebody would do this, they over-killed her. It doesn't make no sense because she never did nothing to nobody!" Hammond said.  

On Thursday, APD told FOX 5 there were no updates to share in the case but that it was "active and ongoing."  

Her "family" says they’re not going to rest until her killer is brought to justice.  

"This is not something we're going to let go. We're going to continue; this is not going to be some cold case… because we are going to get justice, and we got to keep hunting everything down. We ain't stopping," said close friend Kenyatta Williams.