CELL PHONE SIGNALS KEY IN THE INVESTIGATION, AUTHORITIES SAY
Following an extensive investigation by the Platte County Sheriff’s Office, a man has been charged with the January 10 shooting death of Dennis Sharkey on I-29 in Platte County. Ruslan Huseynov, 34, of Kansas City in Jackson County, has been charged with second degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon, and two counts of armed criminal action.
Platte County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Zahnd said, “This has been a complex investigation where deputies with the Platte County Sheriff’s Office pieced together cell phone data and surveillance footage to identify a suspect. Investigators arrested that man, served a search warrant at his residence, and located the weapon we allege was used in the shooting. I can’t say enough about the dogged determination of investigators who refused to give up on this difficult case.”
Platte County Sheriff Erik Holland said, “This has been a difficult investigation that involved multiple agencies. I cannot thank the Metro Squad, the Kansas City Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms enough for their help throughout this case. We would not be here today however, without the incredible work performed by the Platte County Cyber Crimes Unit and particularly Sgt. Jason Penix. They have been relentless in their pursuit of this case and seeking justice for Mr. Sharkey and his family.”
According to court documents, authorities received a 911 phone call on January 10 shortly after 7:00 p.m. related to a shooting. That call came from a couple who had been traveling southbound on I-29 between Barry Road and NW 72nd Street. They saw a dark-colored car, later identified as the suspect vehicle, followed by a white car, later identified as a 2019 Chevrolet Spark, which was driven by the victim, Dennis Sharkey, age 50. Sharkey was a sports reporter for the Platte County Citizen in Platte City.
The couple said that the two cars came to a stop in the far right lane of the Interstate, requiring the vehicle in which the couple were traveling to also stop. 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. As the couple accelerated from the scene, they heard a gunshot.
The female witness described the suspect as a male of possible Italian or Middle Eastern descent.
The victim’s car crashed approximately ¼ mile south of NW 72nd Street, coming to rest against a fence that separates I-29 and NW Prairie View Road. Emergency workers found Sharkey in the vehicle unresponsive with what appeared to be a gunshot wound. Sharkey was taken to North Kansas City Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy revealed the preliminary cause of death to be a single gunshot wound.
A canine belonging to the ATF discovered a recently expended single 9mm shell casing on I-29, north of NW 72nd Street.
Sharkey’s cell phone was recovered from his vehicle. A search warrant related to data from the phone showed the phone communicating at 6:57:50 p.m. on the night of the shooting with the cell phone tower near 6600 NW Tower Drive at 6:57:50, which is located about 950 meters from where the shell casing was found.
A search warrant for other cellular signals traveling southbound at the same time revealed a cell phone allegedly belonging to Huseynov travelling southbound on I-29 and communicating with the cell phone tower on NW Tower Drive at 6:57:43 p.m. on the night of the shooting.
Court documents indicate that phone spent 62 seconds on I-29 in a space of 900 meters, leading investigators to believe Huseynov’s phone was in a vehicle that stopped on I-29 at the time of the shooting.
Investigators also reviewed surveillance footage documenting what the eyewitness couple reported.
On June 10, authorities interviewed Huseynov. According to court documents, he allegedly confirmed his cell phone number and denied owning a gun. However, a search warrant was executed at his residence, and authorities say they located a 9mm Stoeger pistol in a safe in his bedroom.
Court documents state that testing by the Kansas City Police Crime Laboratory confirmed that the shell casing located at the scene of the crime and the bullet removed from Sharkey’s body during the autopsy were identified and verified to test fires performed on the pistol recovered from Huseynov’s bedroom.
Huseynov is being held in the Platte County Jail without bond.
The case is being investigated by the Platte County Sheriff’s Department. The Kansas City Metro Squad, Kansas City Metro Squad, Kansas City Police Crime Laboratory, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation also assisted in the investigation. It is being prosecuted by First Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Mark Gibson and Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Michelle Rioux.
