Christopher PadgettAbout two weeks after Christopher Padgett cut his ankle monitor and disappeared during his murder trial, authorities found the 22-year-old inside a Brainerd home early Friday morning.
A cadre of law enforcement officials found Padgett hiding under a mattress in the back bedroom of a home on the 3200 block of South Street, said Elisa Myzal, Chattanooga Police Department spokeswoman.
Because he was sentenced to life in prison after jurors convicted him of first-degree murder in the 2012 slaying of a taxi cab driver, Padgett does not face additional charges, Myzal said. But another man inside the house, 21-year-old Javonte Wynn, was arrested on outstanding warrants for evading arrest, possessing a firearm with intent to go armed and failure to appear. He is scheduled to appear before Hamilton County Sessions Court Judge Christie Sell on Oct. 31.
Earlier this month, after waiting more than four years to try the case, prosecutors said cellphone records proved Padgett shot 31-year-old Nathan Deere in the back of the head, robbed him, and fled his cab at 1643 Ocoee St. Prosecutors rested their case Oct. 5 after calling to the stand police officers, eyewitnesses and an expert witness, who said Padgett was in the same area as Deere when the homicide happened.
The next morning though, Padgett was nowhere to be found.