(Lyndon) Fubler.

They believe 20-year-old Mark Lorenzo Squires has left Georgia -- the US state where the shooting occurred. "We are following up various leads, which we've forwarded to other agencies,'' said Chief Deputy Ronald Strength, from Richmond County's Sheriff Department in Augusta.

He added a second suspect in the shooting, Daniel Downing, of Richmond County, remained in custody awaiting a hearing.

The 18-year-old was arrested after a handgun, believed to be the same one used in the Fubler shooting, was found at Mr. Downing's trailer park home. "He has been denied bail,'' said Chief Deputy Strength.

Meanwhile, Police are still waiting to interview 24-year-old Augusta College student Fubler, who remains in fair condition in the Medical College of Georgia.

They have already spoken to two other victims of the shooting -- Squires' ex-girlfriend Ms Sheila Kitchens, 20, and her 12-year-old brother, George.

Ms Kitchens, who has been paralysed, is in fair condition at the Medical College, while her brother was released this week from Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Centre.

In further developments, Police have revealed Ms Kitchens was facing federal drug charges when the triple shooting occurred on November 13 at her mother's Pheasant Drive home in Georgia. Kitchens had been arrested along with a former boyfriend and another man in June at her Columbia County home.

According to The Augusta Chronicle Ms Kitchens was free on $10,000 bond awaiting trial on December 4 on charges of cocaine distribution and money laundering.

Police do not believe the charges are connected with the shooting.