UPDATE: East Ridge Police Chief Stan Allen said Monday that investigators have identified a suspect in the killing of Montrell Fears. Chief Allen said the suspect is not yet in custody and could not offer further details.

The victim in Friday’s homicide at the Richwood Apartments has been identified as 23-year-old Montrell Fears of Chattanooga, officials said Saturday. Clint Uselton, the Assistant Chief of the East Ridge Police Department, said he has nothing else to release to the public on the incident, the second homicide in the city in six weeks.

A man was shot dead Friday morning in the parking lot of an apartment complex just off Ringgold Road near Missionary Ridge.

Police were dispatched to the Richwood Apartments at 912 Donaldson Road at 8:21 a.m. on a “person shot” call. Upon arrival they found an African American male, 20 to 30 years of age, dead from a gunshot wound.

East Ridge Police Department Assistant Chief Clint Uselton said late Friday afternoon that investigators have identified the man but are not releasing his name pending notification of family members.

“We have taken statements from a number of witnesses,” Chief Uselton said. 

Chief Uselton said investigators are not releasing much information about details of the incident. Authorities are not saying if they have suspect(s) in the case.

This is the second homicide investigation in the city since July 6. On that date, police were called to the 600 block of South Seminole on a “shots fired” call. Officers found Antonio Smith inside his Ford Explorer suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.

On July 17, three people were shot inside a home in the 5300 block of State Line Road, records show. All three sustained non life-threatening wounds.  

On July 12, a resident on Reneau Way was shot outside his home after he went outside to confront suspects who were attempting to burglarize his vehicle.

No arrests have been made in any of the cases.