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Angel Melendez

Age : 46

Gender : Male

Race : Latino/a/e

Date : 01/26/2026

Location : North Park Apartments, Tillery Road

City : Knoxville

County : Knox

State : Tennessee

Agency : Knoxville Police Department

Officer(s) :Unknown

Cause of Death : Gunshot

Event : Killed by police during endangered child alert response

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On the morning of 01/28/2026, detectives and Special Operations Squad personnel with the Knoxville Police Department responded to an apartment on Tillery Road in Knoxville following information that a 15-year-old girl, the subject of a Tennessee Endangered Child Alert, was at that location with 46-year-old Angel Melendez. Police had also filed charges against Melendez for concealing or harboring a runaway child, contributing to delinquency, and theft of a firearm. Upon entering the apartment, officers encountered Melendez and the missing juvenile. While attempting to detain both, Melendez produced a handgun and pointed it at officers; Lt. Shawn Shreve and Sgt. Chris Hutton then fired their service weapons, striking him. Melendez was pronounced dead at the scene. The 15-year-old was unharmed and recovered; during the incident she struck a third officer in the head with a large knife but caused no serious injury. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is leading the independent investigation, and body-worn camera footage has been released by the department.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.wvlt.tv/2026/01/28/knoxville-officers-involved-shooting-while-responding-endangered-child-alert/
https://tbinewsroom.com/2026/01/28/tbi-special-agents-investigating-knoxville-officer-involved-shooting/
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/man-shot-killed-while-knoxville-164521508.html