Tennessee Bureau of Investigation agent shot and killed during drug bust
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
A Tennessee Bureau of Investigation agent was shot and killed Tuesday after an attempted drug bust went awry.
TBI Special Agent De’Greaun Frazier, 35, was pronounced dead at a hospital in Jackson, about 70 miles east of Memphis. A former police officer, Frazier had joined TBI in February of this year.
"Agent Frazier was exactly what we look for in a TBI Agent: hard-working, enthusiastic, and dedicated to making Tennessee a better place to live,” TBI Director Mark Gwyn said in a statement. “We are deeply saddened by his death and will work aggressively to investigate this case to its fullest."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
According to an agency statement, Frazier was one of several agents taking part in an undercover drug buy Tuesday afternoon. At some point, the would-be seller pulled out a gun and attempted to rob Frazier and his informant. Frazier was shot during that exchange of gunfire.
The suspect was arrested a short distance away and officials said charges were pending. The suspect's identity was not immediately released.
Witness Candice Washington told The Jackson Sun newspaper that she heard "about four shots."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
"I laid on the ground and then when I got up I looked out the window and I saw a black Navigator parked directly in front of my house," Washington said.
“I saw a black male inside of the Navigator and it looked like he had been shot, his eyes were rolled back, his head was limp," she added. "And I saw another black male standing outside of the Navigator in the jarred door with his hands over the man's, I guess, his wound."