Man killed in Old 4th Ward shooting was owner of Buckhead eatery

Atlanta restaurant owner and entrepreneur Chad Dillon was fatally shot in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood.

Credit: Olivia Bowdoin/Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Credit: Olivia Bowdoin/Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Atlanta restaurant owner and entrepreneur Chad Dillon was fatally shot in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood.

A man who was shot to death in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward neighborhood Tuesday afternoon has been identified as the owner of a popular Buckhead seafood restaurant.

Chad Dillon, the 33-year-old owner of The Boiler Seafood, was gunned down at 480 John Wesley Dobbs Avenue, spokeswoman Taylor Brooks confirmed to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Police have not released many details about what happened, but they said officers were called around 3:45 p.m. to the heavily trafficked area just blocks from popular attractions like the Jackson Street Bridge, Freedom Park Trail and Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park.

Derrian Perry, a brand consultant and business associate of Dillon’s, told the AJC the victim’s family planned to release a statement Wednesday evening.

Witnesses told Channel 2 Action News they heard more than a dozen gunshots in rapid succession. Dillon had been sitting in his Rolls-Royce and was checking on another restaurant that was supposed to open, the news station reported. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Officials have not said what prompted the shooting or if any suspects have been identified.

The Boiler Seafood opened on Piedmont Road in 2020 and serves Cajun-style specialties. Dillon also co-owned The Seafood Menu restaurant with rapper Lil Baby. The Martin Luther King Jr. Drive restaurant opened last year.

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