Atlanta police say the man responsible for a fatal shooting on one of Buckhead’s most prestigious streets Thursday morning was arrested in Alabama, in the victim’s stolen pickup truck.
Travis Landrey, 18, faces charges of felony murder, murder, motor vehicle hijacking and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. Christopher Eberhart, 57, was shot and killed in a driveway on Peachtree Battle Road shortly after 7 a.m. Thursday.
Kevin Leonpacher, lead detective on the case, said an Atlanta police officer initiated a traffic stop around 4:20 a.m. on I-75 near Moores Mill Road, after noticing a vehicle with rear-end damage and no license plate. The officer lost track of the vehicle but it was later found overturned on Northside Parkway.
Authorities believe the vehicle had been occupied by Landrey and another man, who was hurt in the wreck. That man was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital with minor injuries.
Leonpacher said authorities believe Landrey fled the scene of the crash and then walked around Buckhead with a gun, looking for another form of transportation.
“We believe, at some point, he came across Mr. Eberhart, backed into a driveway on Peachtree Battle Avenue,” Leonpacher said. “He approached him, confronted him and that confrontation led to the motor vehicle hijacking of Mr. Eberhart’s GMC Sierra pickup and his shooting death at the scene.”
Credit: Atlanta Police Department
Credit: Atlanta Police Department
Residents in the area reported hearing gunfire around 7:09 a.m. and Eberhart’s body was discovered about 20 minutes later. Heather Baker and her 9-year-old daughter spotted the body on their way to school and called 911.
“I did not touch him but I went near enough to him to determine that he did not appear to be breathing,” Baker told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It was clear that he was unresponsive.”
Leonpacher said Landrey linked up with the other man once he was released from the hospital around 9:30 a.m. Thursday, and left the Atlanta area in Eberhart’s pickup truck. Local, state and federal law enforcement agencies were able to track the vehicle to Interstate 65 in Alabama around 3 p.m. entering Mobile County, where Landrey and the other man were arrested by 4 p.m.
“Based on evidence we recovered from the individuals in the vehicles, evidence from inside the vehicle and the processing of that vehicle, warrants were issued late Friday night for Landrey’s arrest,” Leonpacher said.
The man Landrey had been with earlier is not believed to have been involved in the shooting, since he was either in the custody of Atlanta police or at Grady when the shooting occurred. He faces a charge of theft by receiving stolen property, according to Mobile County jail records.
Both suspects were being held at the Mobile County jail, as of Monday.
Leonpacher said both suspects have roots in Louisiana and took a Greyhound bus to Atlanta on Oct. 9. The two were staying at a hotel in Canton. Based on their path, investigators believe the two were trying to travel back to Louisiana after the shooting.
“Any time we have such a senseless act in our city, it is of the highest priority of this police department that we work as diligently, as quick and as hard as we possibly can to track down each and every lead, in order to bring justice to our grieving families,” Atlanta Police Maj. Peter Malecki said.
Leonpacher described Eberhart as a hard-working citizen who lived in Gainesville. Ronald Eberhart said his brother was a family man who loved his kids, enjoyed travel and just loved life.
Credit: Christopher Eberhart's Family
Credit: Christopher Eberhart's Family
Eberhart worked in construction and would often do remodeling work, Eberhart said. He even helped build decks for those with mobility issues and remodeled veterans’ homes for free.
Investigators believe Eberhart arrived early to Peachtree Battle Avenue Thursday to beat traffic since he was driving in from Gainesville and was backed into the driveway, just waiting for the appropriate hour to start work.
“We are all devastated. It was a senseless crime just for his vehicle,” his brother told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Monday. “The whole family is devastated.”
Ronald Eberhart said the family is glad a suspect has been arrested in his brother’s shooting death and wanted to thank those who called 911. Working in multimillion-dollar homes, his brother never feared for his life while on the job, he said.
“He never felt unsafe,” Eberhart said. “You wouldn’t expect that in that area.”
Christopher Eberhart was a member of the Free and Accepted Masons of Georgia, Flowery Branch Masonic Lodge #212 and the Gainesville York Rite Bodies. His brother said the family moved to Georgia in the 1970s and moved to Gainesville around 15 years ago.
“I’m never going to forget him,” Ronald Eberhart said.
Christopher Eberhart is survived by his wife, three children, two stepchildren and numerous other relatives. A funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday in the Flowery Branch Masonic Lodge #212 at 5416 Spring Street in Flowery Branch.
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