Another gas station robbery, this one in LaFayette.

Saturday afternoon around 3, a suspect described simply as “black” carrying a silver gun robbed Steve’s Kwik Stop on South Chattanooga Street at Bronco Rd near Roper.

Afterwards he fled in a dark color older model car driven by a second person. That vehicle’s description matches one seen during a similar holdup in Rome the previous day, but doesn’t resemble anything seen during the robberies in Chattooga County.

Just to be sure, Chattooga’s sheriff is also involved in the investigation trying to figure out if there’s a link between the crimes.

LPD responded to the theft by “increasing patrol.”

Why can they do extra patrols for this but not on a regular basis?     

Friday night Walker County deputies were called to a house on Sheila Gale Ave. in Rossville after 64-year-old Jose Alegre shot at a man leaving his home.

Per the GBI, Alegre fired a gun at a fireplace contractor. Deputies and Walker County SWAT responded, tried to force the suspect to leave his home with teargas, and were also fired at. Around 1:30 AM Saturday officers fired back and ended Alegre’s life.

Neighbors suggest the Cuban immigrant was dealing with mental illness; the GBI continues to investigate.         

Tragic accident in Fort O. claims the life of a 32-year-old motorcyclist.

Heath Brown of Soddy Daisy Tennessee was struck and killed at 27 and Cloud Springs Rd around 6:30 Sunday evening.

Be careful out there.     

LaFayette mom of the year candidate arrested after allegedly crashing her vehicle while high, holding a baby in her lap.

WQCH Radio, 01/27/16: “A 33 YEAR OLD MOM WAS ARRESTED BY LAFAYETTE POLICE FOR DUI-DRUGS AFTER SHE REAR-ENDED ANOTHER DRIVER ON NORTH MAIN STREET, INJURING HER SMALL CHILD. AUTUMN LEIGH HICKS WAS ALSO CHARGED BECAUSE SHE DID NOT HAVE HER TODDLER SECURED PROPERLY IN A SAFETY SEAT.

“THE ARRESTING OFFICER NOTICED A STRONG SMELL OF MARIJUANA COMING FROM HICKS’ VEHICLE, BUT SHE REFUSED A DRUG TEST. HER PROBATION OFFICER ARRANGED FOR THAT, AT THE COUNTY JAIL. HICKS TESTED POSITIVE FOR METH AND MARIJUANA.

“THE OTHER DRIVER INVOLVED STATED THAT SHE STOPPED FOR A RED LIGHT AT ROADRUNNER BLVD WHEN HICKS’ VEHICLE CAME UP FROM BEHIND AND STRUCK HER CAR NOT ONCE, BUT TWICE. SHE LOOKED UP TO SEE THE BABY IN HICKS’ LAP, ACCORDING TO THE POLICE REPORT.

“OTHER CHARGES AGAINST AUTUMN HICKS INCLUDE ENDANGERING A CHILD WHILE DRIVING DUI AND DRIVING WITH A SUSPENDED LICENSE. BOTH CARS WERE BADLY DAMAGED AND HAD TO BE TOWED. THE BABY WAS THE ONLY PERSON TRANSPORTED TO THE HOSPITAL.”   

Victim in Tuesday night’s Rossville killing named as Torry Creek, age 54.

Neighbors say “The Chicken Man” loved raising animals and was a “father figure” for the neighborhood surrounding his Orchard Ave home. But he also had a dark side, and an arrest in December for domestic violence.

Sheriff’s Office investigators have decided Creek’s death was an extension of his domestic violence past and the killing appears to be a situation of self defense. Detectives say the man who killed Creek, still unnamed, was trying to break up a fight between Mr. Creek and his wife.

No charges have been filed in the case and likely never will be.       

Retired teacher Lanny Thomas, a challenger to Jeff Mullis for GA Senate district 53, says his priorities are education and “representing industry” once he’s elected.

Thomas spent most of his career teaching and coaching in Trion schools, but graduated from LHS in 1980 and briefly taught there earlier in his career.

Mr. Thomas’ wife owns an accounting firm that audits businesses and governments, including many cities that would be inside Thomas’ district if he wins. No word yet how he’d address that obvious conflict of interest.

Meanwhile Senator Mullis’ office sent out a release claiming Jeff The Hutt is all about “financial accountability” – which is probably supposed to be a joke.   

BREAKING/DEVELOPING: Walker deputies, GBI, investigating apparent murder in Rossville.

Officers were dispatched to Orchard Ave. a few minutes after 7 PM Tuesday for a male who had been choked and was bleeding from the head after a domestic dispute.

An independent source says the man was taken to Hutcheson and did not survive.

For more on this through the day, check LU Facebook.   

Tuesday afternoon a third small Chattooga County retailer was hit by robbers.

 

This time TJ’s Package Store in Lyerly was the target, robbed by a black man in Realtree camo and pink gloves.

Chattooga investigators say the man left in a white Nissan Altima with two other people, and also want information about a late 90’s Dodge Durango seen near the crime.

Solving this robbery might help crack two other convenience store holdups in Chattooga from the previous week.

Audio from the January 15th armed robbery on Hawkins Dr. in Summerville (which put a man in the hospital with a gunshot wound) has been released and may help identify the suspects in some or all of the robberies.         

Lonnie Henderson, who announced plans to run for Walker Commissioner as a Democrat, ends his campaign citing his inexperience, lack of funds, and inability to get enough signatures to avoid paying to qualify.

The qualification fee to run for Commissioner is well over $3,000 – more money than most people have lying around.   

Murder in DeKalb County Alabama claims the life of a Walker County man.

Investigators say Cody Lee Wade shot 45-year-old Barry White of LaFayette and William Gilreath from Alabama on Saturday. White and Gilreath reportedly drove to help a woman after she got into a fight with the shooter, but when they arrived he met their vehicle with gunfire. White did not survive.   

LaFayette survived another round of winter weather over the weekend when the Blizzard of 2016 failed to do much in Northwest Georgia.

Lookout Mountain battled high winds, fog, and ice, as depicted above – but LaFayette and most of Walker got just a dusting of snow. [Pics courtesy Steve Miller.]

We saw Gov. Deal declare ANOTHER state of emergency, learned how to drive in the snow [NSFW language], and got CNN’s take on the milk and bread thing (it started up north in the 50’s?), but overall the weather crisis was a bust.

More snow, maybe, could fall later this week.                   

Former State Senator Sonny Huggins passed away Friday, age 88.

Huggins represented the state’s 53rd Senate District (including Walker) in Atlanta during 1983/1984 and again from 1997 to 2000.

He was a forest ranger for thirty years and attended First Baptist LaFayette.

Visitation for the Huggins family will be Monday and Tuesday at FBC, with services following Tuesday afternoon.     

When Duane Hollenbeck’s body was found in Chickamauga Battlefield on 12/12, there was speculation if he had been killed or died of natural causes.

Now the GBI says he was definitely murdered, and they’ve charged fellow New York Staters Jennifer DeMott and Robert Martin Brooks with bringing him down from NY and causing him to die. The pair also face charges of elder abuse, but so far few details about the killing or motive have been released.

(Brooks was accidentally released from the Catoosa jail earlier this month when employees there forgot to tell the GBI he’d arrived.)

A “tip” from an unnamed eyewitness linked both to the crime.     

What will happen to Roper when (if?) Haier takes over GE Appliances?

Nobody will know for sure until it happens, but we can look at the Chinese giant’s previous deals to see what they’ve done to other companies after buying them out.

According to Insider Louisville, New Zealanders worried that Haier would shut down and move that country’s top appliance company, Fisher & Paykel, after buying it in 2012. But those fears haven’t come to fruition:

“People worried the Chinese company would gut the Auckland operations, take the F&P intellectual property, and cut jobs, [NZ business reporter Chris] Adams told IL.

“The worries weren’t entirely unfounded — but Adams said Haier’s takeover has benefited F&P more than it has hurt.”

Haier propped up Fisher & Paykel financially and even left its previous executives in place to run the business locally. Haier expanded the kiwi company’s research department and hired 80 new engineers.

Likewise, according to a Haier representative speaking off the record, Haier will leave GE Appliances’ current leadership in place after the proposed $5.4 billion buyout deal of that business is done.

“Haier does not want to do anything to disrupt any of the businesses, particularly the GE division, which is valuable and performing well, the spokesman said.”

How about plant closures? In New Zealand Haier only closed one small factory employing 200 which would probably have closed anyway. Per Insider, any decisions to close GE Appliances facilities in the US will be left up to the company’s current executives – executives who have recently invested billions into those same factories and don’t seem inclined to close any of them.