BALDWIN COUNTY, Ala. ( WKRG ) — In the early morning of June 29, 2023, crime scene tape surrounded Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe. Restaurant manager Jason Mallette was dead from a single gunshot to the chest.
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The alleged shooter was later identified as Travis Lofton, Sr. from Mobile but why he would want Mallette dead remains a mystery.
“As to a motive,” said Daphne Police Chief Brian Gulsby at the time, “we know that this was a targeted attack. Lofton’s wife is a Taziki’s employee and there was some apparent grievance with the victim whether that was actual or perceived remains under investigation.”
Investigators say Lofton drove to Daphne, laid in wait for Mallette, approached him and another employee at the rear of the restaurant, and fired a single shot. Less than 24 hours later Lofton was in custody and charged with murder.
His bond was set at a quarter of a million dollars. He got out of jail three months later but didn’t stay out of trouble, according to officials. Mobile Police said they arrested Lofton again this past summer on drug trafficking charges with more than 100 fentanyl pills and a gun recovered in that arrest.