ERPD Investigating Early Morning Shooting

East Ridge police are investigating an early morning shooting in an apartment complex off of South Seminole.

According to a press release, officers responded to 3133 Bimini Place at about 6:00 am, Monday, on a shooting. Officers found the victim, Verdis Johnson, a 60 year old man, in his apartment suffering from at least two gunshot wounds, one to the hand and one to the lower abdomen.

East Ridge Fire Rescue initially treated the victim until he was taken to Erlanger Hospital.

Initial information indicates that Mr. Johnson left his apartment for work this morning when a masked black male approached him and brandished a firearm. The black male suspect began shooting, striking Mr. Johnson in the hand and abdomen. Mr. Johnson then retreated into his apartment and the suspect fled.

As of late Monday morning, police have no description of the assailant.

Mr. Johnson is undergoing treatment and his condition is not known. The investigation is continuing.

Police are encouraging anyone with information to contact us at 423.622.1725, or the Confidential Tipline at 423.867.0016.

About Dick Cook

Dick Cook has lived in East Ridge since the Kennedy Administration when his parents bought a house on Marietta Street. Dick graduated from ERHS in 1976 before going on to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where he studied Political Science. Dick worked for the Chattanooga Free-Press and the Chattanooga Times Free Press for 22 years. Free-Press Sports Editor Roy Exum plucked him out of production in 1989 and gave him a job as a sports reporter. Dick covered everything from prep sports to the whitewater events on the Ocoee River for the 1996 Olympics. When Chattanooga's two paper's merged, he became the Crime Reporter covering both the Chattanooga Police and Fire Departments. He was among reporters who were honored by the Associated Press for the TFP's coverage of the 2002 fog-shrouded crash on I-75 in Catoosa County, Dick and his wife, Cathy, live on Marlboro Avenue where they are seen frequently chasing around their three grandsons.