The Other McCain

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‘End of Watch’ for a Georgia Cop

Posted on | February 3, 2026 | No Comments

When you think of law enforcement in Georgia, you might think of guys named Bubba or Roy, but probably not Pradeep Tamang. A native of Nepal, a small country wedged between India and Tibet, More than 10 years ago, when Pradeep was still a child, the Tamang family came to America and settled near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where he later worked as a corrections officer at Dauphin County Prison. About a year ago, Pradeep got hired as a cop in Gwinnett County, Georgia:

A cop has died and another has been left seriously injured after they were shot allegedly by a serial criminal in what police described as an unprovoked attack in a Georgia Holiday Inn hotel room.
Pradeep Tamang, 25, died of his injuries after he was shot allegedly by Kevin Andrews, 35, on Feb. 1.
Tamang and his colleague Cpl. David Reed rushed to the Holiday Inn Express hotel in Stone Mountain, around 20 miles from Atlanta, as they probed suspected credit card fraud, according to WBRC.
The officers were invited into the room but were allegedly shot at when they tried to arrest Andrews over an outstanding warrant.
“The suspect produced a handgun and in an unprovoked attack, fired at our Gwinnett County police officers,” cops said.
Both fired back in self-defense but Tamang, who was born in Nepal and was engaged, died.
Andrews, who has a lengthy rap sheet, was left with non-life-threatening injuries.
JD McClure, the Gwinnett County police chief, hailed the officers’ bravery.
“These officers are heroes. They go out to the road every day and face uncertainty,” he said.
“They also understand that at the end of the day, they provide a very valuable service and that is safety.”
Brian Kemp, the Georgia governor, alluded to the dangers cops face in the line of duty.
“This is the latest reminder of the dangers law enforcement face on a daily basis, and we are grateful for every one that puts themselves in harm’s way to protect their fellow Georgians,” he said.

More about the suspect:

The man accused of killing a Gwinnett County police officer and injuring another in a shooting has been charged, according to the sheriff’s office.
Kevin Andrews faces charges of malice murder, felony murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and two counts of aggravated assault against law enforcement.
Andrews had his first appearance on Monday. He did not receive bond.
On Sunday, Officer Pradeep Tamang and Cpl. David Reed were called to a Holiday Inn Express off Park Place Boulevard in Stone Mountain, where Andrews was suspected of fraudulently renting a room.

The location is about 20 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta. With nearly a million residents, Gwinnett County is the second-most populous county in Georgia, and very diverse — more than 35% of the residents area Latino or Asian, and more than 25% are black.

Here is just a little more about suspect Kevin Andrews:

Police said he has an extensive criminal history, including prior felony, robbery, gun and narcotics convictions, as well as an active warrant out of DeKalb County for failure to appear.

How many times must we see different versions of the same basic story before we do something about the “revolving door” problem in the criminal justice system? Seldom does a criminal begin his career with murder. Rather, habitual felons tend to rack up this kind of “extensive criminal history” prior to finally buying themselves a ticket to permanent incarceration. The “failure to appear” warrant from neighboring DeKalb County indicates that they had him behind bars and let him out on bail, despite his prior history of violent felonies. So two cops show up at Holiday Inn where the suspect had fraudulently used a credit card (perhaps stolen) to rent a room and, after discovering he’s got an outstanding warrant, they try to put the cuffs on him and get shot because, although it’s illegal for convicted felons to possess firearms, you don’t become a convicted felons by obeying the law, do you?

Now a young immigrant from Nepal is dead and perhaps the saddest part is, nothing will change. The courts will continue letting dangerous criminals out on the street, again and again, because as a nation, we’ve simply forgotten how to protect public safety. God help us.



 

Category: Crime, Georgia

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