A father shot and killed his 26-year-old son, who was trying to protect his fiancée before his dad turned the gun on him, Missouri authorities say.
Harold Luster, 61, is now charged with murder following the Dec. 24 fatal shooting outside of a home in High Ridge, which is located about 25 miles southwest of St. Louis.
Luster Accused His Son’s Fiancée of ‘Withholding Information’ About His Wife’s Infidelity
Luster is accused of killing Kevin Ward, his 26-year-old son visiting from St. Louis, authorities said. Ward’s fiancée told responding deputies she was in a disagreement with Luster over accusations his partner, Ward’s mother, was cheating on him, according to a probable cause statement.
Luster allegedly accused the fiancée “of withholding information” from him with regards to his wife’s infidelity. “Do you wanna get shot?” Luster said to the woman, according to the court documents.
Ward asked his fiancé to give him a knife and “told her to run and call 911 if something happened,” authorities said. As she began to leave the property, she heard Ward attempt to calm down his father.
‘You Wanna Get Shot Instead?’ Luster Allegedly Said Before Shooting Ward
“You’re not going to shoot her,” Ward told his father, according to the probable cause statement. “You wanna get shot instead?” Luster is accused of telling his son. The woman then saw her partner’s father fire a single shot at his forehead, then witnessed Ward collapse to the ground, authorities said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The shooting was also captured in surveillance footage from a neighboring home, the sheriff’s office said. The video showed a muzzle flash after a man raised his arm, then the victim falling to the ground. Luster was charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action, court records show. He was jailed without bond.
High Ridge is about a 25-mile drive from St. Louis.
