The former police officer who allegedly shot Ahmaud Arbery dead was reportedly encouraged to be a vigilante by local police just months before the jogger was killed.

According to text messages obtained by TMZ between an officer from the Glynn County Police Department and Larry English, the owner of a construction site where Arbery was accused of trespassing through before his death, English was encouraged to contact Gregory McMichael “day or night” if motion-activated cameras showed anyone on his property, rather than contacting local police.

The alleged text sent on December 20, 2019 – two months before Arber was shot-and-killed by McMichael in broad daylight – states: “Greg is retired Law Enforcement and also a Retired Investigator from the DA's office. He said please call him day or night when you get action on your camera.”

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English’s attorney, Elizabeth Graddy, confirmed the text message as authentic and that she herself obtained it a few days ago, along with some emails.

Gregory McMichael, 64, and his 34-year-old son Travis McMichael were charged last week with Ahmaud Arbery’s murder, more than two months after the 25-year-old was killed in broad daylight. The arrests were made after video of the murder was leaked, sparking public outrage.

Ben Crump, the Arbery family attorney has since responded to the discovered text message and says it further proves the coziness between the McMichaels and the Glynn County Police Department.

“It has been long speculated as to why the police didn’t arrest the murderous father and son duo on the day they executed Ahmaud Arbery,” he said in a statement. “Could it be they knew that they would be implicated for aiding and abetting in the crimes that the McMichaels had committed based on this text?”