ATLANTA (WXIA) -- The widow of a construction worker killed during a robbery at a northeast Atlanta Kroger says she didn't want him to work there because of its nickname as the so-called "Murder Kroger."
11Alive News spoke with Kathy Richey by phone from her home in Alabama Friday night. She says police are confident about their leads in the case, and she's pleased that Kroger is offering a $25,000 reward for the capture of Josh Richey's killers, though none of that helps her 10 year-old go to sleep at night without crying.
"It's hard – it's hard," said Richey. "It's really hard when you lose your everything. And that's what he was to our family."
For Kathy Richey, the pain of losing her husband Josh to a gunman's bullet is as senseless as it is vicious.
"He was not a confrontational man," she said. "He was a sweet soul. If they wanted something he would have given it to them."
Richey would get up early to drive from Alabama to work here in Georgia. That's what he was doing Tuesday at the Kroger near the BeltLine, when police say he came upon two thieves rifling through his company truck.
"Josh was a good man; he was a good father; he was a hard worker; he was a family man," she said crying. "It was a senseless loss for nothing. He would have gave them anything they wanted."
Richey leaves behind four children, including his young daughter, who meant the world to him. His widow says she had misgivings about him working at the Kroger on ponce, because of the grim nickname some people have given it.
"He Googled 'Murder Kroger' and that Kroger came up," she said. "He said 'This is where I'm going to be working,' and of course my natural reaction is that I don't want you to go there. You don't need to be there. And he said 'Baby, I'll be fine. It's just going to be during the day, and I'm just going to be there two days.'"
He was the family's sole bread winner and their loss is also being felt financially as well.
Police are not revealing any new details in their investigation, but if you recognize the suspects, please give APD a call.
