East Tennessee Police Mourn Fallen Virginia Officer

Police throughout East Tennessee are mourning the loss of an brother in blue. Saturday morning while conducting a welfare check, 29 year old police officer Michael Chandler of Big Stone Gap, Virginia…just north of Kingsport was shot and killed in the line of duty. Officer Chandler was asked to perform a welfare check at a residence, where he encountered an individual who shot the officer and left his body in a ditch along the home’s driveway. Officer Chandler was taken to a local hospital but passed around 7 Saturday night…Saturday was his 29th birthday. Shortly after Chandler’s death a suspect was taken into custody at a motel in Kingsport. Police arrested a 33 year old Big Stone Gap man…he is being held on outstanding warrants in South Carolina and Wise County Virginia. Charges regarding the shooting of Officer Chandler are pending.