1 year later, search continues for suspect in deadly July 4 shooting

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — While Nashville saw a mostly peaceful Fourth of July this year, the violence experienced during 2023’s festivities has continued to have ripple effects, with police still looking to bring a homicide suspect into custody.

Last year, Metro Nashville police responded to four separate shootings on July 4 in which three people were killed and one person was injured. Several suspects in those shootings have since been taken into custody, but 22-year-old Raceme Crutcher remains at large .

Crutcher and a second suspect, 18-year-old Jaylin Brown , are believed to have been responsible for the death of 16-year-old Etabo Malanda , who was shot and killed at an apartment complex in East Nashville.

Investigators said the shooting happened on the afternoon of July 4, 2023. Malanda was standing on the porch of a unit at the Fallbrook Apartments on Dellway Villa Road when officials said two armed people came from around the corner and confronted him.

Malanda reportedly tried to pull out a pistol that was inside his hoodie, but he was shot. The teenager died shortly after he was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, authorities said.

Afterward, police reported that they recovered a total of four guns from the apartment, including Malanda’s pistol, which they said had been reported stolen. At the time, officials said “strong leads” were being pursued in the investigation.

By July 20, Metro Nashville police announced they had identified two suspects in the shooting . According to detectives, surveillance footage and witness interviews pointed to Crutcher and Brown as the two people responsible for Malanda’s death.

Investigators said the motive was likely an ongoing dispute between the three individuals. Brown was taken into custody about a month later after police reportedly caught him driving a stolen Volkswagen Jetta near the James Cayce neighborhood.

An East Precinct officer had been tracking the stolen vehicle on Aug. 31, without realizing Brown was the driver. After detectives initiated a traffic stop, Brown reportedly got out of the car and tried to run, but they caught up with him.

Brown was booked for criminal homicide and possession of a handgun and was additionally charged in juvenile court for vehicle theft and evading arrest. Court records show his case has since been bound over to a grand jury.

As months passed without any sign of Brown’s alleged accomplice, the police department’s Criminal Warrants Division added Crutcher to its “Top 10 Most Wanted” list on Nov. 15, 2023. He too has been charged with criminal homicide.

According to police, those featured on the list are often considered to be some of the “most violent” offenders in the city. Along with a few other homicide suspects and people accused of various sex crimes, Crutcher has been one of the individuals who have remained on the list the longest.

However, efforts to locate him have been unsuccessful. Tips from the public have aided police in taking several other “Most Wanted” fugitives into custody, with at least 120 arrests made since the program was launched in October 2022.

Anyone with information on Crutcher’s whereabouts is asked to contact the Metro Nashville Police Department at 615-862-8600 or Crime Stoppers at 615-742-7463 .

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