Therefore Thomas and his wife, Cynthia Bailey, announced that they’ve helped increase the reward to $10,000 for information leading to the capture and conviction of the shooter of Atlanta police officer Christopher Smith on Saturday night.
“This is a challenge to business owners,” said Thomas from the Bar One Tapas Lounge on Memorial Drive that he runs with his wife. The bar and his home, Thomas added, is not far from where the shooting took place. Other business owners in proximity to the shooting should be inspired to contribute to the cause. “They should match my $5,000 to get this cop (shooter) off the street.”
Thomas knows the value of police protection and said he has the upmost respect for officers who put their lives on the line everyday. He divulged that he spends upwards of $6000 per month on off-duty officer security at Bar One, which supplements the lounge’s electronic security system.
Smith was putting in work as an off-duty security officer at an apartment complex, not far from on Atlanta’s east side, when police say he was ambushed by a man carrying a shotgun.
The man opened fire on Smith without any known provocation, striking the officer in the face and leg, authorities said.
Peter Thomas added that he believes that those residents and businesses that benefit from police protection should be willing to protect those officers as well.
“I wouldn’t want to hear that somebody who was trying to protect us was shot,” he said. “If this person will shoot a policeman, he’ll shoot anybody.”
Anyone with information about this case is asked to call Crime Stoppers Atlanta at 404-577-8477.
