'Senseless': Father of Three, Businessman Killed by Career Criminal, Police Say
A Tennessee father and businessman was shot and killed in Chattanooga last week by a man with a lengthy rap sheet, according to police.
Local businessman Christopher Wright, 38, was downtown in the city on Thursday to attend his 20-year high school reunion, according to The Chattanoogan.
It reported Friday that he graduated from the city’s private Baylor School in 2003 and went on to graduate from Yale University.
According to police, Wright was on Market Street downtown Thursday just before midnight when a verbal altercation ensued between him and a man identified as Darryl Roberts.
Witnesses said Roberts, 57, goes by the street name “Too Tall.”
According to police surveillance footage and a witness, Roberts and another man were having a conversation when Wright walked by them.
Roberts allegedly said something to Wright, who turned around several times as words were exchanged between the two men. The victim then walked approximately 30 feet away from Roberts and his companion.
The witness said Wright never came near Roberts, who approached the father of three, pulled out a handgun and shot him once in the head, The Chattanoogan reported.
Paramedics attempted to save Wright from his injuries, but he died.
The businessman and his wife had welcomed a baby girl into the world eight weeks ago, the New York Post reported.
Tennessee businessman fatally shot by career criminal on his way to high school reunion https://t.co/7vfg4M47AF pic.twitter.com/ITdR8QHNs0
— New York Post (@nypost) October 3, 2023
Roberts has a lengthy criminal record that includes convictions for crimes such as home invasion, assault, disorderly conduct, theft and gun charges, according to the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
It said he has faced more than 60 criminal charges since the late 1990s.
The man charged in connection with the murder of a 38-year-old Chattanooga businessman has an extensive criminal history, court records show. https://t.co/yLVJkO1X5K
— Times Free Press (@TimesFreePress) October 2, 2023
Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly said in a statement on social media that Wright’s shooting death was “an isolated, senseless, and brazen act of gun violence.”
“The sad reality is that sometimes proactive policing only goes so far, particularly when you’re dealing with the kind of person who would commit a murderous act of apparent rage in front of witnesses on the steps of his own apartment building under the blue light of a well-known public safety camera,” the mayor said.
While we are still collecting all of the facts about this heartbreaking tragedy, there are some things we do know: this was not gang violence, or a mugging, or a robbery. It was an isolated, senseless, and brazen act of gun violence after what appears to be a verbal exchange. 2/7
— Tim Kelly (@MayorTimKelly) September 29, 2023
The sad reality is that sometimes proactive policing goes so far, particularly when you’re dealing with a person who would commit an act of apparent rage in front of witnesses on the steps of his own apartment under the blue light of a well-known public safety camera. 4/7
— Tim Kelly (@MayorTimKelly) September 29, 2023
Baylor School President Chris Angel also issued a statement about the killing.
“The Baylor School community is heartbroken to learn of the sudden death of Christopher Wright ’03, who would have celebrated his 20th class reunion this weekend with his fellow classmates,” Angel said, according to the Times Free Press.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with Chris and his family for their devastating loss.”
Roberts was arrested the day after the shooting in a collaborative effort by the Chattanooga Police Department, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
A witness to Wright’s murder reportedly picked Roberts out of a photo lineup, the Chattanoogan reported.
Roberts was being held at the Hamilton County Jail and Detention Center on a charge of first-degree murder.
His bond was set at $5 million.
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