Suspected murderer and homeless man charged with federal firearms offenses

ATLANTA - Olaolukitan Adon Abel, a convicted felon, and Damon Marquis Yarns, an Atlanta-area homeless man, face federal firearms charges based on their possession and purchase, respectively, of a handgun allegedly found at the scene of the murder of a U.S. Department of Homeland Security employee in DeKalb County, Georgia this week.

"The defendants allegedly violated federal law to put a firearm in the hands of a convicted felon with tragic consequences," said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. "I have expressed to DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston that I have full confidence in her office's ongoing investigation and anticipated prosecution of Monday's heinous attacks in Brookhaven and Decatur. My office and federal law enforcement agencies will continue to provide any requested support."

"Through strong partnerships and proactive efforts, we are making measurable progress in reducing crime. These charges reinforce our commitment to holding offenders accountable and protecting our communities," said ATF Assistant Special Agent in Charge Ryan Todd.

According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the criminal complaints, and other information presented in court: in the early morning of April 13, 2026, DeKalb County Police Department officers responded to an alleged homicide in a residential neighborhood in Decatur, Georgia. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security later identified the victim as one of its employees, Lauren Bullis. DeKalb County police officers allegedly found a loaded 9mm pistol and five 9mm cartridge casings on the ground near the murder victim.

Based on a National Tracing Center analysis of the firearm, Damon Marquis Yarns allegedly purchased the 9mm pistol at a federally licensed firearms dealer in midtown Atlanta on February 20, 2026. Yesterday, a special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives interviewed Yarns. Yarns explained that he has been residing in homeless shelters since relocating to Atlanta last year. He allegedly admitted that he purchased a firearm for a Nigerian or British man he knew only as "Abdul or Obie," who he identified in a photo array as Abel. Yarns stated that Abel paid for him to travel by rideshare to purchase the firearm for Abel and admitted that, when he purchased the firearm, he lied by indicating on an ATF form that he was the actual buyer of the firearm. After the purchase, Yarns allegedly gave the firearm to Abel and never possessed the firearm again.

On April 13, 2026, Georgia State Patrol troopers stopped Abel's car in Troup County, Georgia. Officers searching the car found a box of 9mm ammunition and shell casings matching the same brand of ammunition found at the murder scene in Decatur, Georgia. Law enforcement arrested and transferred Abel to DeKalb County, where he is facing numerous felony charges, including for malice murder, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Abel was previously convicted of a felony for Assault of a Police Officer with a Deadly Weapon on January 2, 2025, in the Superior Court of San Diego County, California, and he was sentenced to probation in June 2025 for four counts of misdemeanor sexual battery in the Recorders Court of Chatham County, Georgia.

Damon Marquis Yarns, 35, appeared in federal court today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher C. Bly and was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending further proceedings. Olaolukitan Adon Abel, 26, remains incarcerated at the DeKalb County Jail.

Members of the public are reminded that the complaints only contain charges. The defendants are presumed innocent of the charges, and it will be the government's burden to prove the defendants' guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with assistance from the DeKalb County Police Department, Brookhaven Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, and Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General.

U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg is prosecuting the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney's Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.