During a preliminary hearing Thursday, a Georgia Bureau of Investigation agents said that the man who shot and killed Ahmaud Arbery used a racial slur as he stood over Arbery's lifeless body.
GBI Agent Richard Dial said Thursday that Roddy Bryan — one of the three men charged with murder in connection to Arbery's death — claimed Travis McMichael used a slur after he shot Arbery with a shotgun.
Dial also testified Thursday that Bryan, Travis McMichael, his father, Gregory, repeatedly "boxed in" Arbery while he was jogging to prevent him from escaping.
Watch the hearing live in the player below.
Bryan and the McMichaels appeared in court via teleconference to a preliminary hearing in which the defense challenged the evidence that led to their arrest, WXIA reports.
Kevin Gough, an attorney representing Bryan, told USA Today that lawyers may discuss bond for the three men following Thursday's hearing. All three are currently being held in the Glynn County jail without bond.
Arbery, 25, was killed on Feb. 27 in a suburban neighborhood of Brunswick, Georgia. A police report taken at the time determined that Travis McMichael had shot and killed Arbery, though no arrests were immediately made.
The McMichaels claimed they thought Arbery matched the description of a suspect of a "string" of robberies in the area, and that Travis McMichael shot Arbery after he struggled for his gun. However, local media reports that the McMichaels filed the only report of a robbery in the area in the weeks leading up to the shooting.
On May 5, a video was leaked to the public that reportedly showed the events surrounding his death. The video showed the McMichaels cut off Arbery's path as he jogged. The McMichaels were arrested by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation two days later.
Bryan was arrested a few weeks later. He allegedly filmed the video of Arbery's shooting, and in the police report taken at the seen Gregory McMichael mentioned that Bryan had forced Arbery to turn around and run toward the McMichaels.
Prior to the arrest of the McMichaels and Bryan, Arbery's case bounced between several jurisdictions in Georgia. Gregory McMichael is a former police officer and investigator for the Brunswick District Attorney's Office, causing a series of conflicts in the justice systems in Georgia.
