Chattanooga police were called to Memorial Hospital about 1 a.m. Saturday to interview a gunshot victim who had been taken to the hospital, according to department spokeswoman Officer Rebecca Royval.
When officers arrived, they spoke with the victim, Johnny Barbour, 28, who said he was walking in the 2100 block of Rawlings Street when a red SUV drove by and an unknown occupant shot him for no reason.
After speaking to the lead investigator, Barbour changed his story, saying that a light skinned black male exited the red SUV, pointed a gun at him and told him to “lay it down.” Barbour said he attempted to grab the gun, it fell to the ground and went off. Barbour was struck in the left upper thigh, and the bullet exited just below his knee cap, which contradicts both of the victim’s accounts, Royval said. Barbour was treated for his injuries and released.
There was no crime scene located in the 2100 block of Rawlings Street, and no one in the area heard gunshots around the time of the incident, Royval said.
Man killed in car accident Saturday
The driver killed early Saturday in a single-car crash on Tunnel Boulevard has been identified as Jeremy Walton, according to Chattanooga police spokeswoman Officer Rebecca Royval.
Walton, 40, of Wauchula Street, was pronounced dead at the scene where the Jeep Cherokee hit a utility pole.
Police said speed was a factor in the accident.