Georgia Man Arrested Over Murder of Nat King Cole's Great-Nephew Tracy Cole

Ricardo Gayle was charged after Cole was fatally stabbed in Atlanta in September

A Georgia man has been arrested for the Atlanta murder of Nat King Cole’s great-nephew.

According to an Atlanta police statement obtained by PEOPLE, Ricardo Gayle, 41, is accused of stabbing Tracy Cole, 31, to death in September. Gayle was taken into custody by the Fairburn Police Department following a traffic stop Saturday. Custody of Mr. Gayle was then transferred to APD.

Gayle was booked into the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta on multiple charges, including murder, armed robbery and aggravated assault, jail records seen by PEOPLE show.

According to an APD press release, Cole and Gayle knew each other. “APD homicide investigators have determined that the incident was not a random act; it has been confirmed that the victim, Tracy Cole, and the suspect, Ricardo Gayle, knew each other,” the statement read.

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Tracy Cole.

Tracy Cole’s Instagram

Cole was attacked around 2 a.m. local time on Sept. 14, according to a police report on the incident obtained by PEOPLE.

He was stabbed multiple times in the neck, chest and head before being taken to a local hospital, where he later died.

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According to WSB-TV, Tracy Cole was the grandson of Freddy Cole, one of Nat King Cole’s three brothers. Like his legendary brother, who died in February 1965, Freddy Cole was an accomplished jazz singer and pianist and was inducted into the Georgia Hall of Fame in 2007.

Nat King Cole poses for a portrait session in 1964.

Michael Ochs Archive/Getty Images

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Tracy was reportedly a longtime member of Cascade United Methodist Church in Atlanta, and last month, senior pastor Kevin Murriel paid a heartfelt tribute to him following his death.

“Tracy had this personality that really transcended culture, it transcended race, it transcended class,” Muriel told Fox 5 Atlanta. “Tracy became a friend to everyone. He was family. He was more than a young man in the community. He was a child who walked the floors and aisles of the church. He just brought an abundance of joy wherever he went.”

Family friend Camille Love also remembers Tracy as a “good guy.”

“I met Tracy probably when his grandfather brought him to the Nancy Wilson concert in Chastain Park during the Atlanta Jazz Festival,” she told WSB-TV, “He was wonderful, you know? He was just kind, gentle, casual. Loved the good life. You know, just an all-around good guy.”

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Source: HIS Education