GBI Investigates Officer Involved Shooting in Savannah

Savannah, GA (January 22, 2025) - At the request of the Savannah Police Department, GBI agents are investigating an officer involved shooting in Savannah, Georgia. Mark Dennis Whibbey, Jr., age 27, of Seabrook, South Carolina, was shot and killed during the incident. No officers were injured.

Preliminary information indicates on January 22, 2026, at about 1:30 p.m., Savannah Police Department officers responded to a 911 call reporting a man, later identified as Whibbey, waving a firearm in the street outside a business on West Congress Street. Another 911 call reported a man shoplifting and carrying a firearm at a convenience store located at the intersection of Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive and Bay Street.

Officers made contact with Whibbey and issued verbal commands for him to drop the firearm. Whibbey did not comply and continued walking north on Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive toward the Riverwalk area. An officer attempted to deploy a taser, but it was unsuccessful. Officers continued issuing commands for Whibbey to drop the firearm as he proceeded toward the Riverwalk.

Video surveillance footage shows that officers were able to isolate Whibbey in one of the expanded Riverwalk sections. Whibbey began pacing and holding a firearm at his side. Whibbey refused to comply with commands and began walking towards civilians and officers with the gun in his right hand. Whibbey reached behind his back with his left hand toward an object in his rear waistband. Five Savannah Police Department Officers fired at Whibbey, hitting him multiple times.

Medical aid was given but Whibbey was pronounced dead at the scene.

The body will be taken to the GBI Pooler Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.

Anyone with information about this incident is encouraged to call the GBI Regional Investigative Office at +1-770-388-5019. Anonymous tips 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.

Once the investigation is complete, the case file will be given to the Eastern Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for review.