Police Say Gang Members Made Threats, Displayed Weapons On Facebook Live Just Prior To Murder

  • Tuesday, September 17, 2024

A gang specialist at the Chattanooga Police Department said he turned on his computer just in time to catch almost the entirety of a Facebook Live by four youths, who now face first-degree murder charges for a killing a short time later.

Sgt. Josh May said three of those in the car could be seen wielding handguns and another had a rifle.

Tremaine Dillard and Tyqurerio Jazzkem Malone are currently being tried in the courtroom of Criminal Court Judge Amanda Dunn.

The case of Montrell Franklin is on the docket for Nov. 6, and that of Eric Sims for next April 7.

They are charged in a shooting at the 9 Brothers convenience store at W. 38th Street and Central Avenue on June 22, 2020. Robert Dowdy was killed and Brandon Rakestraw was badly injured.

Sgt. May said it was a case of one gang against another - the Bloods that mainly hang out on the Southside and the Crips that are headquartered in areas like East Chattanooga and East Lake.

He said he and other detectives had gone that day to the funeral of gang member Derrick "Donkey" McKinney, noting that sometimes violence breaks out on such occasions. He said he got back a little earlier than the others and caught the Facebook Live just as it was starting.

He recorded it using Snagit software, and it was played for the jury.

The witness said the live broadcast from a silver Nissan Rogue showed the gang members "displaying guns and making threats."

Sgt. May told the jury, "The vast majority of gun violence is gang-related."

Authorities believe that Franklin drove the Nissan to the territory of the Bloods, where a number of Blood members were standing outside the convenience store, including the two victims.

The shooting was caught on video, the state said.

The jury was shown several photos of the suspects dressed in gang colors and displaying gang signs.

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