SHAWNEE, Kan. — A utility worker says he was held at gunpoint while on the job – prompting prosecutors to file criminal charges against a Shawnee man.
Richard Weber, 59, is now facing aggravated assault charges for an incident that occurred on Tuesday near Hallet and W. 71st Street.
Chris King, a utility locator with USIC, said he feared for his life, when he was just doing his job and suddenly found himself staring down the barrel of a shotgun.
“He had it by the barrel,” King said of Weber’s gun, “and he had it by his side, and he was like, ‘Get out of my yard! Get out of my f***ing yard!’ And at that time, that`s when I had my hands up.”
It was a moment that King will never forget, as he said Weber confronted him as he marked utility lines for Google Fiber contractors at a home next door to Weber’s house.
“Well, I was scared to death, really,” King said. “Scared to death… I didn’t know what to think. With all this craziness going on, I thought I was gone.”
It was an unexpected encounter that quickly escalated when King briefly stepped over the property line into Weber’s yard, and for some reason, Weber got very upset.
“The only thing I noticed was that gun that he had by the barrel,” King said, “and as he`s coming at me, he`s pointing it and I`m going, ‘Okay, that`s why I`m backing up.’”
The homeowner who King was doing work for eventually came to King’s rescue – explaining he’s had countless problems with Weber in the past and then calling police.
“I`m more shaken,” King said of the moments after the incident. “Upset, frustrated, like I`m trying to do my job and I mean, it just caught me all off guard. I didn’t know what to think.”
After he was charged with aggravated assault, Weber appeared in court Wednesday for his video arraignment.
Meanwhile, King is glad to see Weber face the consequences of his actions, and had this message to share with him:
“I`ll pray for you,” King said. “I`m sorry for whatever you got going on. But I really do pray for you.”
Weber bonded out of jail Wednesday afternoon. But when FOX 4 stopped by his house to get his side of the story, his wife shut the door in our face.
