TBI and GBI solve twenty-five year murder investigation

Walker County, GA (September 5, 2020) – On Friday, September 4, 2020, at approximately 10:00 PM, Special Agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) arrested Robert Allen Mowry, age 50, and charged him with one count of malice murder for the death of James Richard Harris, age 54, in December of 1994.

On Thursday, December 22, 1994, at approximately 9:00 AM, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s (GBI) Regional Office in Calhoun was requested by the Walker County Sheriff’s Office to assist in a death investigation.  James Richard Harris was found deceased at the entrance to his property and residence at 1610 Boss Road, Chickamauga, GA earlier that morning.  Harris had been murdered and robbed by the gate of his property as he was leaving for work.  At the time, Harris worked at Miller Industries in Chattanooga, TN.

In 2009, investigators received information from Crime Stoppers about the murderer’s possible identity.  The GBI, Walker County Sheriff’s Office, and the Chattanooga Police Department pursued additional leads which brought the case closer to a resolution; however, there was not enough evidence to make an arrest.

In 2020, police developed new evidence following surveillances and interviews conducted by the GBI, the Walker County Sheriff’s Office, the TBI, the Tullahoma Police Department (TN), the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office (TN), and the Nashville Police Department.  This new evidence led to a match to evidence from the original crime scene.

Over 25 years later, Mowry was taken into custody in Nashville, TN.  This joint investigation will be turned over to the Walker County District Attorney’s Office for prosecution.