Antonio Sparks, a 22-year-old Black man from Chattanooga, Tennessee, was known to his family and friends as “Jappy.” A 2018 graduate of Howard High School, he was the father of a young son, Antonio Sparks Jr., and the son of Reneka Sparks.
Late on the night of Monday, December 6, 2021, a violent confrontation unfolded on the 2600 block of Cannon Avenue.
According to later court testimony from a detective, Antonio Sparks and another man, Vincent Mays, went to a residence and fired multiple shots into the home. A man from inside the house emerged and returned fire. In the ensuing gun battle, Sparks was struck in the head. He was transported to a local hospital in a private vehicle but did not survive his injuries. A 42-year-old woman who was inside the residence was also hit by a bullet but was expected to recover. Investigators noted that Mays left the scene and did not stay to help Sparks.
The investigation was complicated by the number of people who fired weapons during the incident. Initially, Chattanooga Police did not file charges as they worked to determine the sequence of events and the specific actions of each person involved. Three months later, in March 2022, authorities arrested Vincent Mays on outstanding warrants. He was charged with criminal homicide, attempted first-degree murder, felony reckless endangerment, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony.
The tragedy extended beyond that night. On December 18, 2021, a shootout erupted in the parking lot of the Taylor Funeral Home. Vincent Mays was shot and wounded in the attack. Authorities later charged Antonio Sparks’s uncle, Nautica Goldthreat, in connection with the shooting. A detective testified that the incident was fueled by the family’s “understandable frustration and anger” with Mays over his role in the gun battle that killed Sparks and for leaving him at the scene.
As of November 2023, the charges against Nautica Goldthreat, including attempted first-degree murder, were bound over to a grand jury. The case against Vincent Mays continues to proceed through the legal system. Police have asked anyone with information regarding the death of Antonio Sparks to call the Homicide Tip Line at 423-643-5100 or submit an anonymous tip through the CPD Mobile App.
