Two women arrested after 4-year-old found dead in SW Atlanta townhome

Two women were arrested this week in connection with the death of a 4-year-old boy found in a southwest Atlanta home. The child, Colby Cooks, died from blunt force trauma, according to an autopsy report released Wednesday.

Atlanta Police Department officers and firefighters entered the townhome at 3507 Cardinal Dr SW around 7:20 p.m. Sunday. They responded to a welfare check request and forced entry into the residence. Medical personnel attempted to save Colby, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators identified the two suspects as 32-year-old Jasmaine Smoak and Jasmine Jenkins. Both women were described as family acquaintances. Police stated that Smoak fled the scene with three children before officers arrived. Officers used license plate reader technology to track her vehicle to Washington, Georgia, in Wilkes County.

The Wilkes County Sheriff's Office located Smoak and took her into custody without incident. Authorities recovered all three children. One child was transported to a nearby hospital to treat visible injuries. Initial charges against Smoak included second-degree cruelty to children and concealing the death of another.

Following the autopsy, Atlanta police upgraded Smoak's charges to murder, aggravated assault, and first-degree cruelty to children. On Thursday, the APD Fugitive Unit and Wilkes County deputies arrested Jasmine Jenkins in Wilkes County. She was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant for murder and first-degree cruelty to children.

Police have not disclosed the specific relationship between the suspects and the children. They also have not announced when Jenkins will be transferred from Wilkes County to Atlanta Police Public Safety Headquarters for processing. The case remains open as investigators continue to gather evidence.