Buddy Frazier
A woman from Rossville and a man from Chattanooga have been arrested on multiple charges after attempting to break into two Bradley County residences, forcibly entering a Bradley County business, and stealing over $10,000 of property.
At approximately 5:14 a.m. on Saturday, deputies from the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to a business in Charleston, in response to an alert from the business’ security system. Upon arrival, deputies observed broken glass from previous forced entry, a damaged security camera system, a cigarette case broken into and several packs of cigarettes missing, employee paychecks missing from an unlocked safe, and several rolls of lottery tickets missing. Deputies also observed that the VHS to the camera system’s VCR was missing as well.
Shortly after, at approximately 6:28 a.m., dispatch received a call reporting an unfamiliar vehicle and suspicious individual “prowling” near a residence on Mill Hamlet Road. The caller reported that before the vehicle sped off, he/she observed several rolls of lottery tickets inside and secured a photo of the license plate. The photo was sent to BCSO property crimes detectives who identified the tag number. The caller also provided a description of the vehicle and two suspects inside. It was later discovered that one suspect had attempted forced entry into a residence in the area.
About one hour later, at approximately 7:30 a.m., another prowler was reported to dispatch at a residence on Hopewell Drive. The caller reported that the suspect had attempted to gain entry into the back door of his/her residence and provided a description of the vehicle and suspects, which matched that of the previous caller’s description. BCSO deputies reported to the scene at approximately 7:33 a.m., detaining a female suspect who was standing by the vehicle with no incident. Deputies then approached a male suspect who was still on the back porch of the residence, and gave verbal orders to stand down. The man was detained after he initiated a physical altercation with both deputies. One deputy sustained injuries during the struggle and was taken in for medical treatment.
Deputies on the scene at Hopewell Drive reported a matching license plate number that had been reported at Mill Hamlet Road. Once the vehicle was detained, detectives found lottery tickets and pay checks all matching the descriptions of items stolen from the business in Charleston. After further investigation, it was discovered that the vehicle has been stolen out of Catoosa County.
The female suspect was identified as Hope Barber from Rossville. The male suspect was identified as Buddy Frazier Jr. from Chattanooga, who had on an active warrant out of Catoosa County.
“Once again, residents from outside of our county have come here to break the law and have swiftly faced the consequences,” said Sheriff Steve Lawson. “I have said it before and I will say is again: if you come to Bradley County and commit these types of crimes, my officers and I will dedicate every resource available to us to arrest you and prosecute you to the fullest extend of the law.
“I am very pleased to see the teamwork exhibited by our patrol and criminal investigation divisions. I believe that this incident has shown the efficiency to how our agency works, along with the excellent dispatchers at the Bradley County 911 Center.”
Both Ms. Barber and Frazier were both taken into custody and booked at the Bradley County Jail. Ms. Barber is facing the following charges: theft over $10,000, vandalism over $2,500, burglary, theft under $1,000, violation of governor’s order, two counts of attempted aggravated burglary and two counts of vandalism under $1,000. Frazier is facing the following charges: theft over $10,000, vandalism over $2,500, burglary, theft under $1,000, violation of governor’s order, resisting arrest, two counts of vandalism under $1,000, two counts of attempted aggravated burglary an two counts of assault on law enforcement officer.
Hope Barber