Veteran officer Tim Chapin was shot and killed April 2 after pursuing and exchanging fire with a suspect following an attempted armed robbery of a pawnshop on Brainerd Road.Jesse Mathews‘ girlfriend faces more than 10 years in federal prison if convicted on charges she helped him during and after robberies in Colorado.
Federal prosecutors indicted Amber Vlasak-Hudson, 30, on charges of accessory after the fact, which carries up to three years in prison, and failing to report knowledge of a felony, which carries up to 10 years in prison.
Mathews, 26, faces first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and aggravated robbery charges in connection with the shooting death of Chattanooga police Sgt. Tim Chapin on April 2. Chapin was killed during a botched robbery attempt at the U.S. Money Shops on Brainerd Road.
Mathews’ parents, Kathleen and Ray Vance Mathews, are scheduled to plead guilty today in federal court to helping their son after he left Colorado and came to Chattanooga.
Authorities say they sold some of his stolen goods at a local gun show and area pawn shops in the weeks after his flight from Colorado. They also charged that family members hid evidence and lied to police following his arrest following Chapin’s death.