Former Confederate Employee Shot and Killed
June 29th, 2007 by Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider"
Chris Roberts, a former motorcycle electrician employed by Confederate Motorcycles for over 5 years, was shot and killed on Father’s Day when he confronted a thief stealing his motorcycle. Chris had recently left the company to return to New Orleans after following Confederate in their post Katrina move to Birmingham. If you saw photos or video of the Wraith on the Bonneville Salt Flats, you saw Chris, he was in the saddle.
This was actually the second time Chris had been shot during an attempted robbery. The first time he was hit in the arm, he dressed the wound himself and went to work the next day.
Stories like this are never pleasant, but the motorcycle community should know about individuals like Chris who contribute much and often are known by so few. Unless the story is told, he becomes a statistic in a city where this sort of thing is happening far too often. A young man, a new father with his future and his family’s future ahead of him, stopped short, … far too soon.
New Orleans police have no leads.
Thanks, Brian for letting us know.
Links:
Confederate Motorcycles
Nola.com
Posted in Down Time, Motorcycle Business
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14 Responses to “Former Confederate Employee Shot and Killed”
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June 29th, 2007 at 9:06 pm
What a bummer, being shot to death on Father’s Day and leaving a family behind. I feel awful for his family and friends.
June 29th, 2007 at 10:02 pm
YOU ARE NOW IN THE HANDS OF GOD. RIDE EASY BRO.
June 29th, 2007 at 11:49 pm
Thanks, Paul for posting this up. Chris was a good friend, and great guy.. He’ll be missed..
-dave
June 30th, 2007 at 12:11 am
That’s really sad and my heart goes out to his family.
June 30th, 2007 at 4:48 am
Damn… I’ve always hated thieves but I lack the words to describe one that turns into a murderer. I wish with every strand of my being that this murderer is found. Unfortunately, with a very heavy heart, I know that true justice will never happen for Chris or those near to him. Damn…
June 30th, 2007 at 6:15 am
A thief, stealing a bike, shoots a biker. Scum, no lower word for it.
June 30th, 2007 at 10:16 am
It is a shame to lose such a genuine person in a world with so few…
June 30th, 2007 at 11:45 am
My first reaction is,”Why do people keep returning to this place?” With so many fewer people there, why is the murder rate going through the roof?
My belief after thinking on it for a few minutes is “Why don’t the people from this area go back and take the place back, and make it a home again?” I’m very sorry for Chris, and even more so for his family. Personally, I’d never go to NOLA without my Beretta and a backup piece. No big deal though, as I have no desire to visit the cesspool of humanity that appears to have become of the place.
Paul, are there any charity funds setup for the wife and kids?
June 30th, 2007 at 12:00 pm
I’m very saddened by this and I didn’t even know him. …(edited by kneeslider)
jOHN
June 30th, 2007 at 7:09 pm
I didn’t realize they found out the murderer is a black man. I figured it was just some white (beer belly) biker dude who really wanted the bike. Good luck trying to hide or sell something as recognizeable and loud as a Wraith.
-todd
July 1st, 2007 at 8:18 am
Over on another news site…
http://blog.nola.com/times-picayune/2007/06/robber_murder_leaves_hole_in_t.html
…there is an address left in the comments for a fund that has been setup for his daughter.
Aoife Bennett-Roberts Fund
Whitney Bank
P.O. Box 61260
New Orleans, LA. 70161-1260
or any Whitney Bank Branch
July 2nd, 2007 at 3:46 pm
It’s the culture of government corruption that makes certain areas of NOLA so dangerous. There’s nothing special about the street level criminals- they wouldn’t last long in any other city. As a matter of fact a lot of the ‘Katrina refugees’ found this out the hard way when they tried to conduct their lives as usual in their new homes. Many of them are rotting in jail where they belong.
July 11th, 2007 at 11:36 am
Thank you for posting this about Chris, and for your prayers for our family. He was my best friend, my love, a brother, a son, a father, and a friend to many. There are no words to describe how much we miss him, and the pain that this act of cowardly violence has caused us. Thank you for keeping us in your thoughts, and pray that this monster is caught and brought to justice.
August 4th, 2007 at 10:21 pm
I worked hand and hand with Chris Roberts at confederate. He was a lot of fun to be around. He spent the night at my house many times after the long hours we put in. We talked of growing old building bikes together. It is such a shame that this light was extinguished. He will be greatly missed. I Hope all the best for his little girl!!!