A Fort Valley family is still searching for answers after someone tried to break into their home just before sunrise Tuesday.
Cars drove up and down Oak Street after the invasion to get a glimpse of the scene, but for Shebah El-Amin, it started as a regular day.
“I left for work around 7 a.m.,” she said.
Then, she got a phone call from her partner, Cedric Perry, telling her someone broke into their home.
“He said, ‘Shebah, come get the kids. Somebody tried to come in the house and I shot them,’” she said.
Fort Valley Police Chief Lawrence Spurgeon says Perry shot 32-year-old Xavious Bivens in the torso, while a second intruder ran off.
The couple’s daughter watched the whole thing.
El-Amin says by the time she made it back home, the intruders were gone and her house was a crime scene.
“I was unable to see my children. I was frightened [and] on the verge of a panic attack because I didn’t know if everybody was okay,” she said.
Her two children were alright, but police are investigating why Bivens would break into their home, especially since El-Amin says they’ve helped him in the past.
"[That was] someone we have given clothes to when he needed them. It just disturbs me that he came here and tried to invade our home,” she said.
El-Amin wishes things played out differently.
“For him to come into our home and put my children in danger… that’s what has me so I’m upset right now. I’m not sure how my 9-year-old will feel when she goes to sleep tonight or tomorrow.”
The second suspect is still on the run and the Fort Valley Police Department is asking anyone with information to call them at 478-825-3383.