Man charged with murder of Platte County sports reporter in suspected road rage incident
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - A Kansas City man has been charged with several felonies, including murder, in a suspected road rage shooting incident from January that killed a Platte County man.
Ruslan Huseynov is charged with second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action, following a shooting that killed 50-year-old Dennis Sharkey Jr. on Jan. 10, 2025, according to court records in Platte County.
Sharkey Jr.’s body was found inside his car near NW 70th Street and NW Prairie View Road. The Platte County Sheriff’s Office previously said they believed Sharkey was a victim of road rage. Sharkey, a reporter for the Platte County Citizen, was driving a white 2019 Chevrolet Spark and deputies said they believed he was returning from covering a sporting event when he was killed.
On Tuesday, the Sheriff’s Office said they identified and interviewed a possible suspect. A day later, Huseynov is facing several felony charges in relation to the incident.
Huseynov is currently in custody at the Platte County Jail and is being held without bond.
“Tragedy does not begin to describe what this family has had to endure,” said Platte County Sheriff Erik Holland.
Platte County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Zahnd and Sheriff Holland held a news conference Wednesday afternoon to announce the charges.
“This has been an extraordinarily complex investigation where deputies with the Platte County Sheriff’s Office pieced together cell phone data and surveillance footage to identify a suspect,” said Zahnd.
Zahnd said authorities interviewed Huseynov on June 10. That day, he confirmed his phone number and denied owning a gun. However, when a search warrant was executed at his home, authorities found a pistol in a safe in his bedroom.
The probable cause documents state authorities received a 911 call on January 10 just after 7 p.m. related to the shooting. Documents say a couple has been traveling on southbound I-29 when they came upon the victim and suspect’s cars stopped in the far right lane, causing the couple to stop their vehicle as well.
“As the couple pulled around the stopped cars, the driver of the dark colored car got out of his vehicle with a gun in his hand and pointed at the victim’s car,” said Zahnd. “As the couple accelerated from the scene, they heard a gunshot.”
The probable cause document goes on to say Sharkey Jr’s car crashed approximately a quarter mile south of NW 72nd St and came to rest against a fence that separates I-29 and NW Prairie View Rd. Emergency workers found Sharkey Jr unresponsive with what appeared to be a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at North Kansas City Hospital. An autopsy revealed the preliminary cause of death to be a single gunshot wound.
The case was investigated by multiple agencies, including the Platte County Sheriff’s Office, Kansas City Metro Squad, KD Crime Lab, ATF, and FBI.
The incident was suspected to be a road rage. Authorities couldn’t confirm that suspicion on Wednesday.
“We actually still don’t know what really led up to this shooting,” said Zahnd. “It certainly has all the hallmarks of a road rage case, but at the end of the day, we don’t know exactly what happened on that highway.”
KCTV 5 spoke to Sharkey Jr’s family and friends following the news conference. They say they’re still grieving, but find some happiness knowing the man accused of killing Sharkey Jr. is behind bars. They feel Kansas City is safer with the suspect off the streets and say that’s due to authorities ‘being as diligent as Dennis would have been’.
This is a developing story. KCTV will update it as more information becomes available.
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