Georgia fugitive wanted for murder caught trying to skip fare at BART station, authorities say

By Dan Raby

A Georgia fugitive who has been on the run for years is now in custody after officials say he was caught trying to skip a fare at a BART station in El Cerrito, California.

Davonte Fore, 27, was convicted of murdering a transgender woman and sentenced to life in prison in 2024; however, authorities said he fled during the first few days of his trial and hadn’t been seen since.

According to officials with the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office, officers found 25-year-old Skyler Gilmore shot in the bedroom of her Stone Mountain apartment on June 4, 2021. She did not survive her injuries.

Detectives say they used data from Gilmore’s cell phone to identify a number that had talked to her in the hours before the shooting, including one text where Gilmore sent the individual the code to her apartment complex’s gate. Investigators eventually linked that number to Fore.

Fore and another suspect, identified as JaQuan Brooks, were members of a local gang who were ordered to kill Gilmore because she was involved with another member of the criminal group, authorities said. Brooks is now serving a life sentence in the DeKalb County Jail.

After escaping the metro Atlanta area while on Bond, Fore’s location remained a mystery for years. Officials say that changed on Tuesday morning, when BART Police spotted him trying to evade the fare at the El Cerrito del Norte Station.

Fore attempted to flee the scene but was caught a few blocks from the station. Despite providing a false ID, a fingerprint check revealed who he was, BART officials said.

The Georgia man remains in custody at the Contra Costa County Jail. He is expected to be extradited back to Georgia in the coming weeks.