One person was killed and at least five others were wounded in a shooting at a Nashville restaurant during Easter brunch celebrations Sunday afternoon and police say they are looking for a suspect who fled in an SUV.
“This was not a shootout …This was one person who decided to pull a gun based on an altercation occurring with another man and then he fired multiple shots,” Nashville police spokesperson Don Aaron said.
Police said they are seeking Anton Rucker, 46, in the shooting. Authorities say he is a convicted felon and fled the restaurant, Roasted, in a Mercedes SUV. The Mercedes was located overnight, according to a Monday morning X post from the Metro Nashville Police Department.
The man who was killed was identified as Allen Beachem, 33, the Nashville police said in a post on X.
Police didn’t name the others who were shot. Those five people have non-critical wounds, Aaron said in an afternoon news conference. Medical responders also transported another person who was possibly grazed by a bullet and a pregnant woman who suffered an apparent panic attack.
Anton Rucker Metro Nashville Police
The suspected gunman had arrived at the restaurant minutes before the shooting with a woman, who also left with him in a Mercedes SUV, Aaron said.
Detectives believe the man who was killed and the assailant were having an argument that escalated quickly, Aaron said. The restaurant was crowded, though police couldn’t say how many people were inside when the gunfire began.
Anthony McClain, the north precinct commander for the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, said surveillance video showed “mass chaos” during the shooting.
“Everyone’s trying to get out and trying to escape the gunfire,” he said. “Some people did try to resist the gun, the gunman.”
Police said there is no indication the suspect and victim knew each other and called the shooting an isolated incident.
BREAKING: Detectives are working to determine the motive for this gunman opening fire during Sunday brunch at Roasted on Garfield St. 1 man killed, several others hurt, non-critically. Shooting occurred at 3 p.m. Gunman fled in this Mercedes GLS 450. Know him? 615-862-8600. pic.twitter.com/bwJrCjwmhf— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) March 31, 2024
Authorities posted photos from the shooting on social media, including an image of someone who appears to be holding a gun.
Police released another photo of the suspected gunman sitting at a table and urged anyone with information to contact detectives.
