I-40 shooter scheduled for jury trial

A Dallas man who shot two Arkansas men on Interstate 40 near Vian in July 2021 is scheduled for a 9 a.m. Aug. 7 jury trial, according to Sequoyah County court records.

Lee B. King, 28, is facing two felony counts of shooting with intent to kill, two felony counts of maiming, and one count of attempted robbery in the first degree after shooting the men on July 17, 2021.

The two men, Jake Myers and Derek Riggs, both of Greenwood, reportedly offered King roadside assistance after seeing him stranded. The two took King to Love’s car stop in Vian where they can be seen on surveillance video purchasing a gas can and gas for King. They then deliver King back to the vehicle, a silver Nissan. Moments later, King shoots both men – Riggs, twice in the abdomen and Myers, once in the face.

Sequoyah County Sheriff Larry Lane Jr. said in a former interview that King began his crime spree earlier that day when he carjacked and robbed an Oklahoma City woman. Lane said King shot the woman and pawned some of her belongings in Tulsa before driving her car until he ran out of gas four miles from the Vian exit.

According to reports, authorities attempted to locate King in a wooded perimeter of where the men were shot but later discovered he’d returned to the car, put gas in and left.

OSBI was able to link King to the crime after the OSBI Latent Evidence Unit collected items from the stolen Nissan, that was later abandoned in Antlers. Police also reported finding a shell casing matching the gun used to shoot the two Good Samaritans.

An Antlers police officer attempted to pull King over for a traffic violation but he led the officer to a dead end road where he ditched the car and disappeared into the woods. King was last seen at an Antler’s thrift store but U.S. Marshals, OSBI, Oklahoma Highway Patrol, OKC Police and other law enforcement officers later found him in a relative’s apartment in Dallas, ending the manhunt for him. King was returned to Oklahoma City before being extradited back to Sequoyah County and denied bond.

During former court testimony, Myers was questioned about what happened that day and the events leading up to the shooting of both he and his longtime friend, Riggs.

Myers said after returning to the vehicle, he got out to open the hatchback to retrieve the gas can. He said the hatchback was locked so he asked Riggs to put the vehicle in park to see if it would unlock. When he returned to the front of the vehicle he said he could hear Riggs screaming.

“I witnessed Derek wrestling across the center console fighting with the man we picked up (King) and I saw the gun in King’s hands,” Myers said. “I could see them struggling over the gun and I tried to open the passenger door but it was locked. That’s when I heard the gun go off.” Myers said he believed a second gunshot struck him in the chin and Riggs was shot while sitting in the front seat. He said he knew both of them had to get out of the car, so he made his way to the back of it but then went back for his cell phone that was still charging.

“I knew I was going to need my phone to call for help. King was in front of the car and said something I didn’t quite understand because my ears were still ringing from the gunshots,” he said. “That’s when he said something to the effect of ‘if you don’t get out of this car, I’ll shoot you again.’” Myers said he retrieved his phone and ran from the car where he met up with Riggs. He said they hid in the tall grass of the median about 20 to 30 yards from where King was with the vehicle.

“But I watched him and knew Derek had the key to the car,” Myers said. “King then closed the back and ran into the woods with the gas can.”

The two injured men hid until an ambulance arrived. Two different couples reportedly stopped to help them, along with an emergency room doctor.

Myers said he did call 911 but couldn’t speak well due the gunshot to his face.

“The bullet hit the left side of my face, went through the right and into my arm,” he said. “The bullet almost destroyed my jaw and my teeth are not my own. All my lower teeth are gone and my tongue doesn’t fit in my mouth properly.”

He said he’d undergone seven surgeries in the last year, two of them being dental procedures. Since then he’s said it’s been difficult to eat and others have a hard time understanding him when he speaks.

When Riggs testified, he told District Attorney Jack Thorp he and Myers were driving when they noticed a light-colored vehicle with what appeared to be car trouble and passed King, who was walking.

“We debated on whether or not to stop and help him,” Riggs said.

He said the three of them went to Love’s where they purchased a gas can, gas and bottled water before heading back to the stranded vehicle.

Riggs said he remembered feeling a sense of unease and when he looked back at King, who was sitting in the backseat, he saw King brandish a semiautomatic handgun. However, he said he didn’t think King knew he’d seen the handgun.

“It was then that I went into this crazy fight or flight mode,” he said. “I started going through all these different scenarios in my head and I knew I couldn’t leave because I had to save Jake. I was in fear for both of our lives.”

King has lengthly reported criminal histories in Oklahoma, Louisiana and Texas.