- British doctor Matthew Wilson, 31, killed by a single gunshot wound to the head
- He was lying in bed in an apartment in Brookhaven, Atlanta, when he was killed
- Dr Wilson was visiting relatives in the US from England, when he was fatally shot
- Police said they think he died when someone 'discharged their gun by mistake'
Matthew Willson, 31, of Chertsey, Surrey, had been staying with relatives in a flat in a suburb of Atlanta in Georgia when he was struck in the head by the bullet.
Multiple people phoned 911 in the early hours of Sunday morning at about 2am after hearing gunshots in the 3600 apartment complex on Buford Highway in Brookhaven.
After officers had arrived on the scene, another person called 911 to report that a man had been shot inside an apartment in the nearby 3100 block on Clairmont Road.
Officers moved to the 3100 block and found Dr Willson with a gunshot wound to the head, according to Sergeant Jake Kissel of the Brookhaven Police Department.
Dr Wilson was taken to hospital but was pronounced dead. Police have not yet arrested anyone but said officers were investigating the death as a homicide.
Detectives believe the deadly shot was fired into the apartment from the neighbouring complex and described it as a 'reckless discharge of firearm(s)'.
They also do not believe Dr Willson was an intended target of the shooter and are working on the premise that the fatal shot was a 'random act'.
A Brookhaven Police Department spokesman said: 'This incident appears to be a random act involving individuals participating in the reckless discharge of firearm(s) which led to the tragic death of Dr Willson.
'Dr Willson was in town from England visiting loved ones when the incident occurred.'
A UK Foreign Office spokesman said today: 'We are supporting family of British man following his death in the USA, and are in contact with US authorities.'
British doctor, 31, killed by stray bullet in Atlanta while in BED
Matthew Willson, 31, from Surrey, was staying in an upmarket suburb of Atlanta, Georgia having flown to America last week to visit his California-born partner Kate Shepard, a physicist.
British doctor, 31, killed by stray bullet in Atlanta while in BED
British doctor Matthew Willson (left) was shot when someone in a nearby apartment in Brookhaven, Atlanta, 'discharged their gun by mistake' early on Sunday, police said.
