GBI Investigating Two Deaths Connected to Elbert County Shooting Incidents

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is assisting the Elbert County Sheriff’s Office after a pair of connected shooting scenes left two people dead and another injured.

On Saturday, November 29, 2025, deputies were called to the 1500 block of Bowman Highway after a man reported he had been shot. The victim identified the shooter as 31-year-old Moriah Lane Mills of Elberton, who ran from the scene.

As deputies searched nearby roads for Mills, one patrol deputy came upon what appeared to be a single-car wreck on Pulliam Road in Dewy Rose. When the deputy approached the vehicle, he saw Mills in a grassy area away from the road holding a handgun. Despite repeated commands to drop the weapon, investigators say Mills shot herself. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Inside the wrecked vehicle, deputies found the body of 62-year-old Refugio Torres of Elberton. He had been shot and died at the scene.

Both bodies were sent to the GBI Medical Examiner’s Office for autopsies. The surviving first victim was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

The case remains under active investigation. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the GBI Regional Investigative Office in Athens at 706-552-2309. Anonymous tips for the GBI can also be submitted by calling 1-800-597-TIPS (8477), online at https://gbi.georgia.gov/submit-tips-online, or by downloading the See Something, Send Something mobile app.

When the investigation is complete, the findings will be turned over to the Northern Judicial Circuit for review.