Man shot to death in Old Fourth Ward identified as owner of popular Buckhead seafood restaurant

ATLANTA — A 33-year-old restaurant owner is dead, and his killer is still on the run.

Investigators said someone shot and killed Chad Dillon as he sat in his Rolls Royce SUV.

It happened Tuesday afternoon, as Dillon worked on the opening of his new restaurant on John Wesley Dobbs Avenue in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood.

“Chad really didn’t deserve to go out like that. He didn’t deserve that,” Bre Dawson told Channel 2′s Audrey Washington.

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Dawson works at Dillon’s Buckhead restaurant, “The Boiler Seafood and Crab Boil.”

“He was a great guy. He was a genuine person,” Dawson said.

Witnesses said they heard about 14 gunshots at the scene. Dillon died at the hospital. The shooter or shooters took off.

“This appears to be a targeted incident, this isn’t random,” said Lt. Andrew Smith with the Atlanta Police Department.

Why anyone would want Chad Dillon dead is unknown.

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Friends said Dillon was well-liked and respected in the local business and Atlanta music communities.

The 33-year-old donated thousands to help ex-offenders rebuild their lives.

One of Dillon’s employees told Washington that Dillon helped him when he was in need.

“When I was down bad, I needed someone to help me, he was that shoulder,” The employee said.

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Wednesday, there was a growing memorial in front of the Buckhead restaurant.

“He’d give you the shirt off his back and that’s why it’s so sad to hear about this for real,” Dawson said.

Atlanta police said they are looking through surveillance video at the scene.

Dillon’s family will travel from his hometown of Brooklyn, New York to make funeral arrangements.

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