Police say the suspect fired several rounds, but no bullets struck the employee.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — A 38-year-old man was arrested after police said he punched, stabbed and fired shots at a Bank of America employee during a safety deposit box visit at an East Brainerd branch.

The case moved into court after Chattanooga police identified the suspect as Ladarryl Martin and charged him with attempted second-degree murder and possession of a firearm during a dangerous felony. The employee, a 28-year-old man, survived injuries police first believed came from a gunshot. Doctors later determined he had been stabbed.

The violence was reported shortly after 2 p.m. April 22 at a business in the 2100 block of Gunbarrel Road, a busy East Brainerd corridor lined with banks, restaurants, medical offices and retail centers. Officers were sent to what was first described as a person shot call. When they arrived, police said they found Martin in the parking lot and the injured employee in the lobby. The first report suggested the worker had a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. Hamilton County EMS took him to a hospital, where medical staff determined the injury was not from a bullet. Police later said Martin became upset with the employee, punched him, stabbed him and fired several rounds. “None hit the victim,” police said in a public summary of the arrest.

The employee had been helping Martin with his safety deposit box when the encounter turned violent, according to an affidavit described by local news outlets. The worker told police that Martin became very angry for no clear reason and then shot at him. Investigators have not publicly said what, if anything, was inside the box or whether a dispute over access, paperwork or bank procedure played any role. Police also have not released the employee’s name. The victim’s age, the location of the attack inside the bank and the statement that the injury was non-life-threatening remain among the few details made public about his condition. No other injuries were reported by police in their first account.

Gunbarrel Road runs through one of Chattanooga’s busiest commercial areas, and the report drew a large police response because the call first came in as a shooting. In the early stage of the case, the difference between a gunshot wound and a stab wound became a key point in the public timeline. Officers first found an injured man and believed he had been shot. The later hospital finding changed that part of the case but not the seriousness of the allegations. Police said several rounds were fired during the attack, turning a bank service appointment into a felony case involving both a knife injury and gunfire inside or near a public business during regular afternoon hours.

After his arrest, Martin was transported to the Hamilton County Jail. Police listed two charges: attempted second-degree murder and possession of a firearm during a dangerous felony. Jail and court information reported in the days after the attack showed Martin held on a $575,000 bond, with a next court appearance set for June 9. The charges remain allegations, and Martin is presumed innocent unless convicted. Police said the information released so far is preliminary and could change as the investigation continues. The department’s Homicide Unit responded to the scene, a step Chattanooga police said was part of the investigation into the violent attack.

The suspect gave investigators a statement that added another unresolved piece to the case. According to the affidavit described in local reports, Martin said he remembered going to the bank and requesting access to his safety deposit box. He said he remembered being in a room with workers, then next remembered jumping over a half door with his gun in his hand. He also said the gun had been racked, so he knew he had fired it. Martin told officers he was trying to stop people from entering the bank because he thought someone could be dead. Police have not said whether investigators found evidence supporting that belief.

The attack left several questions unanswered. Police have not publicly identified the weapon used to stab the employee, how many rounds were fired, where the rounds ended up or how many customers and workers were inside the branch at the time. They also have not said whether any bank security officers were present or whether surveillance video captured the encounter. Bank of America’s branch on Gunbarrel Road remained the central scene in the case, but the police summary described the location only as an East Brainerd business. Local reports later identified it as a Bank of America branch and connected the attack to a safety deposit box visit.

The case now turns on medical records, witness accounts, police reports, any security video and the defendant’s statements to investigators. Prosecutors will have to show the facts behind the attempted murder charge and the firearm count. Defense filings could challenge intent, memory, the sequence of events or the meaning of Martin’s statement after the arrest. Police said anyone with information can contact investigators, but they have not announced a public briefing or released a fuller timeline. The next known milestone is Martin’s scheduled June 9 court date.

Author note: Last updated May 18, 2026.