ATLANTA — A man is in custody after a 4-year-old girl was fatally stabbed at an apartment complex in south Atlanta.
Atlanta police say officers forced their way into an apartment on Allison Court off Arthur B. Langford Parkway after receiving reports of a dispute between a man and a woman.
Inside the apartment, officers found a man holding a young girl, both suffering from cuts.
“Upon forced entry into the apartment they located a male who was holding a child who apparently was suffering from some serious injuries,” said Atlanta Police Lieutenant Christopher Butler.
Police say officers were able to calm the man and take him into custody using de-escalation techniques.
“The officers did a fantastic job and were able to get that child away from the male using de-escalation techniques. We were able to take that male into custody,” Butler said.
The child was taken by medics to Hughes Spalding Children’s Hospital.
“Grady arrived on scene to transport the child to Hughes Spalding where unfortunately the child was pronounced deceased. That child was 4 years old,” Butler said.
The man was also taken to the hospital with cuts and injuries.
Police say investigators are still working to determine what led to the dispute and the relationship between the man and the woman involved.
“We’re still working on trying to figure out what started the dispute, and the exact relationship between the male and the female,” Butler said.
The investigation is ongoing.
WSB Radio’s Mary Ryan Howarth contributed to this story.