The scene of interest is a segment of Treadwell Street in Memphis, Tennessee, as seen on Google Maps. Inset: Iysha Chapman, as presented by the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.
In a dramatic turn of events in Tennessee, a woman tried to make a quick getaway as her car was about to be repossessed. In a moment of desperation and chaos, authorities report that she ended up shooting the tow truck driver.
Identified as 26-year-old Iysha Chapman, she now faces grave charges of aggravated assault, according to records from the Shelby County court. She remains in custody with a bond set at $150,000.
Details from the affidavit of complaint reveal that the incident unfolded when a team from a towing and recovery company arrived on Treadwell Street early Wednesday morning. Around 3:45 a.m., they planned to tow a 2015 Lincoln MKC, a task they were assigned by a repossession order, to the address where Chapman was reportedly staying.
Upon their arrival, Chapman emerged and requested to remove her belongings from the vehicle. The men agreed, advising her to follow up with the lien holder for further resolution. What started as a seemingly straightforward repossession quickly spiraled into a criminal event.
However, when the tow truck worker asked her for her keys back, she “refused to give them to him” and stated, “you all will have to drag it,” the court document states. The man said he got in the truck and prepared to do just that.
As he was inside the truck, the man stated he heard the defendant say, “I will kill you,” and she allegedly fired a gunshot and hit the other worker — who was not in the truck — in the shoulder. The wounded worker hopped in the vehicle, and the men drove away and called 911.
Officers with the Memphis Police Department arrived at the Treadwell Street location and spoke with Chapman. She reportedly said she came outside of a home and noticed her vehicle was being towed. “She advised she missed a payment on Monday but thought she had a five-day grace period,” the affidavit states.
The defendant continued, claiming “she attempted to jump in the vehicle and drive off when one of the tow truck drivers stopped her from getting inside of it by pushing her back.”
Chapman “felt helpless,” she recounted, so she “went in her purse,” pulled out her firearm, “and fired a shot striking the male in the shoulder.”
Investigators got a search warrant and seized a teal .380 Glock that had five live rounds in it. When the wounded tow truck worker was later shown a photo lineup of six people, he reportedly “positively identified Chapman.”
The defendant was arrested and booked into jail; she is expected to appear in court on Monday.