An 80-year-old man is accused of shooting his roommate to death during a fight in which the victim purportedly attempted to kill the suspect. He is being charged with multiple counts, including second-degree murder.

When Taney County Sheriff’s Office officers received a report on November 2 at 7:04 p.m., they learned that a guy in Bradleyville had been shot. They then called paramedics to request help airlifting the man to a hospital. The victim, 52-year-old Jon Lovelace, was pronounced dead at the scene by the time the ambulance arrived.

Charles Tinker was identified by deputies as the accused gunman and taken into custody at the site, per the probable cause affidavit. Nearby, authorities allegedly discovered a 9-millimeter Ruger handgun.

During a dispute, a witness reported to deputies that they witnessed Tinker shoot Lovelace in the stomach. Because he “made aggressive statements to the police officers on scene that he fired the victim during a verbal argument,” Tinker supposedly attested to the story.

Roommate Shot Amid Escalating Differences, Resulting in Murder Charges

According to Tinker, Lovelace stayed at the house but didn’t contribute to other costs or pay the rent. The reason he shot Lovelace, according to him, was that Lovelace “told him he was going to kill him.” Tinker had taken four shots of whiskey that evening, so deputies took him to the hospital for a brief confinement.

In an interview with a Taney County deputy on November 3, Tinker is said to have acknowledged shooting Lovelace. In response to Lovelace’s purported threats to murder Tinker, the affidavit states that Tinker took out a gun, “fired two shots behind a vehicle to make another person leave from the place of residence and fired two more shots at the victim.”

According to reports, he declared his intention to shoot Lovelace in the leg. He fired from his porch and went back inside. According to the affidavit, Tinker did not visit Lovelace or offer assistance. There are reports that Tinker “said he shot the victim because he had ‘pushed my buttons’ and that’s all he was going to take.”

It had been stated that the two men’s differences had gotten worse over time. According to the affidavit, Lovelace did not resist Tinker at the time of the shot and was not carrying a weapon. According to reports, Tinker shot his roommate “out of a combination of anger and fear of safety.” He was arrested and charged with second-degree murder, armed criminal action, and unauthorised use of a firearm after being checked into the Taney County Jail.