At the request of 11th Judicial District Attorney General Coty Wamp, TBI special agents continue to investigate an officer-involved shooting that occurred Tuesday afternoon involving the Chattanooga Police Department.
At approximately 12:18 p.m., on Tuesday, December 24th, officers with the Chattanooga Police Department responded to a report of a man armed with a knife in the 7800 block of East Brainerd Road.
Preliminary information indicates that when officers attempted to make contact with the subject, he fled into a nearby wooded area. Officers gave verbal commands for Roberto Carlos Rodriguez Zayas (DOB: 9/22/86) to drop the weapon, but, for reasons still under investigation, the situation escalated, resulting in at least two officers firing upon Zayas. He was pronounced deceased at the scene. No law enforcement officers were hurt in the incident.
TBI agents are working to independently determine the series of events leading to the shooting, including collecting evidence and conducting interviews. Throughout the process, investigative findings will be shared with the district attorney general for her further review and consideration. The TBI acts solely as fact-finders in its cases and does not determine whether an officer’s actions were justified in these types of matters. That decision rests with the District Attorney General requesting TBI’s involvement.
The TBI does not identify the officers involved in these types of incidents and instead refers questions of that nature to the respective department to answer as it sees fit.
Any available updates on this investigation will be posted online at TBINewsroom.com.
TBINewsroom.com 