REWARD OFFERED
A $1,000 reward has been posted by the Dayton Police Department and Rhea County Sheriff’s Office for help identifying a person of interest in the Sept. 6 fatal hit and run involving a pedestrian struck near the We Care Thrift Store and the Krystal restaurant. If you have any information please contact Rhea County Sheriff’s Office at 423-775-2442 or the Dayton Police Department at 423-775-8403.
HELP OUT
We Care Thrift Center officials plan a “hot dog fundraiser” this Saturday to help the family of Walter Hale with medical and funeral expenses. The fundraiser will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Thrift Center on Market Street in Dayton, Tenn. Participants can buy hot dogs, chili, coleslaw and potato salad with proceeds from sales going to help the family. For more information, call 423-775-6595.
There's a $1,000 reward for information leading to a person of interest in a now-fatal hit and run on Sept. 6 in Dayton, Tenn., that killed a longtime employee of the We Care Thrift Center.
Walter Hale, who worked at the center for the last six years, died Saturday from injuries he sustained after being run over by an unidentified motorist police are seeking as a suspect. The reward was posted by the Dayton Police Department and Rhea County Sheriff's Office.
Dayton police Chief Chris Sneed said surveillance video from minutes before the incident shows a man believed to be the driver of the pickup truck that struck Hale.
"We're trying to identify an individual, a person we have interest in. We need to talk to that individual," Sneed said Tuesday.
On Sept. 6, Hale was behind the center when a man in a pickup truck pulled around at a loading dock, Sneed said.
"It appears that the gentleman gets out of his car and starts walking around behind the building. Then the truck drives out, and it appears the truck accelerated, hit [Hale] and drove out on Iowa Avenue and turned left as if going toward Market Street," Sneed said.
Hale fell off the hood of the pickup truck and into some rocks near the Krystal restaurant across the street, Sneed said.
Despite treatment, Hale died Saturday. An autopsy is underway, the chief said.
In the videos, the person of interest can be seen walking around shopping inside and talking to a staff member about a piece of furniture that he measures with a tape.
Sneed noted the man might favor his left leg.
The truck is described as a white mid- to late-1990s Ford Ranger.
We Care store manager Ina Carol Ring said Tuesday that Hale worked for the center for the last six years and was a beloved member of the staff. He came to the center after the business on Rossville Boulevard in Chattanooga where he worked closed, Ring said. Hale's wife and daughter also have worked there, she said.
"Everybody here loved him. He was definitely capable as far as his skills go, but he also had a good sense of humor, and there was no job that was too big or too small," Ring said.
Sneed encouraged people to watch the video posted on the police department's Facebook page to see the person of interest and how he moves as he shops around the store. There are a number of versions of the video on the page.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569.