Authorities in a suburb south of Atlanta reported that officers shot and killed a man inside a house engulfed in flames early Thursday. Upon entering, they discovered a woman's body with burn injuries and successfully rescued two women and a child who were trapped in a bedroom. The incident unfolded around 3:40 a.m. local time when Locust Grove police responded to reports of a house fire with people inside, according to Police Chief Derrick Austin. Officers forced their way through the back door and encountered 29-year-old Stefan Lee, who was armed with a large knife.

Lee ignored repeated orders to drop the weapon, prompting officers to deploy a Taser and a beanbagshotgun, both of which failed to subdue him, police said. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) stated that Lee then charged at the officers with the knife, leading them to open fire. He was pronounced dead at the scene before medical transport could occur.

As firefighters extinguished flames in an upstairs bedroom, they found 26-year-old Jazzlyn Philips dead with burns. The cause of her death remains unclear. In a separate bedroom, officers located the three survivors who had barricaded themselves inside and guided them to safety outside.

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Investigators are probing the fire's origin. “We suspect arson, but it's not confirmed,” Austin told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Officials in the town, located about 50 kilometres southeast of downtown Atlanta, have not clarified the relationships among those involved. The GBI is conducting autopsies on Lee and Philips.

No officers sustained injuries. As per protocol, the GBI is investigating the shooting, and the Henry County district attorney will determine if charges are appropriate.

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