VALDOSTA – A 21-year-old Valdosta man is dead after being shot early Monday morning, according to the Valdosta Police Department.

Police are still looking for a suspect in the incident.

Lawrence Franklin, 21, of Valdosta was pronounced dead at South Georgia Medical Center after police found him on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive with a gunshot wound to the torso, authorities reported.

At 3:24 a.m. Monday, police responded to 911 reports of a person being shot outside of a business on the 100 block of West Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.

“When the shooting occurred in the parking lot, there were numerous people present who left the area as police were arriving and rendering first aid to the victim,” according to a VPD statement released Monday. “The police department is seeking assistance from any individual who may have witnessed the incident or may have seen something that could assist in their investigation.” 

Police found Franklin shot and administered first aid until emergency personnel services arrived to take him to the hospital.

Valdosta Police Department person’s crimes unit detectives and Valdosta Lowndes Regional Crime Laboratory crime scene personnel investigated the scene.

Franklin will be transported to the Georgia Bureau of Investigations Medical Examiner’s Office in Atlanta for an autopsy, police said.

Last weekend, Johnnie Malachi, a 19-year-old Valdosta resident, was shot and killed outside of a Bemiss Road business in the early morning hours of Sunday, Aug. 30. A crowd of people also dispersed from the scene when Valdosta police arrived and authorities are looking for a suspect. 

VPD asks if anyone has information or video that could assist the investigation to contact the Bureau of Investigations, (229) 293-3145, or the tip line, (229) 293-3091.

“This is a senseless and tragic loss of a young man’s life, and our thoughts go out to his family. We know that there were witnesses to the incident and we hope that they will come forward to help us give Mr. Franklin’s family answers,” VPD Chief Leslie Manahan said in a statement.