CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. (TCD) — A man is in custody on suspicion of severely beating a 77-year-old man inside a bathroom using a shower rod and a towel to allegedly commit the crime. The victim later died.
According to a news release from the Clayton County Police Department, on July 26 at approximately 5:47 p.m., officers responded to the 2000 block of Deann Drive to a report of an injured person and made contact with the victim, 77-year-old Ivan Millman, and another male outside of the home.
Police said that both Millman and the male stated that Millman had been attacked at a different location in Atlanta, but they couldn’t specify the exact place. Officers documented the report and transported Millman to a hospital for medical care.
Between July 26 and Aug. 7, several of Millman’s relatives contacted police in reference to the attack. One person said they found blood inside his home July 30. A Clayton County officer went to the residence and photographed the area, but the home was not processed as a crime scene at the time.
Clayton County Police said there is an investigation into “why more appropriate measures were not taken at that time.”
Then, on Aug. 7, police received another call from a biohazard cleaning crew who “had some concerns that the home may have possibly been a crime scene.” Investigators soon determined the crime occurred in the home and not in Atlanta as they originally said. Millman was in hospice care at the time, and he died the next day.
Police identified Millman’s son, Kevin Flowers, as the suspect and obtained a warrant for him Oct. 6 on charges of felony murder and aggravated assault. He had been taken into custody on unrelated charges two days prior. Clayton County Police said they spoke with Flowers about Millman’s death, and he provided “inconsistent statements.”
Millman’s daughter told WAGA-TV their family first became concerned when they hadn’t heard from Millman, so she asked a neighbor to check on him.
The neighbor reportedly encountered a man at the door who claimed Millman wasn’t there. The victim’s daughter told WAGA the neighbor became suspicious and “heard some moaning and groaning.” The neighbor reportedly went inside the home and found Millman severely beaten and called 911.
The victim’s daughter said Flowers allegedly used a towel and shower rod to attack Millman, adding, “There was blood everywhere.”
WAGA reports Millman was also living with bone cancer.