Man who ambushed random Amazon driver, dragged her into a ditch and shot her in the head learns his fate

A Missouri antheral is headed to situation for shooting an Amazon transportation operator arsenic she passed him, past dragging her retired of the motortruck and into a ditch, wherever helium changeable her successful the head.

Thomas Coy, 65, was sentenced to 40 years down bars successful the decease of 23-year-old Jasmine Taylor, tribunal records say. In September, helium pleaded guilty to 1 number each of second-degree murder and equipped transgression action.

The unit took spot connected Feb. 5, 2025, connected Lawrence County Road 2152, astir 40 miles westbound of Springfield.

That day, an Amazon motortruck was seen crashing into a obstruction astir 4 p.m., according to a probable origin connection issued by the Lawrence County Sheriff's Office and obtained by Springfield-based CBS affiliate KOLR and Osage Beach-based Fox affiliate KRBK, which collectively broadcast arsenic Ozarks First.

Taylor was down the instrumentality of the crashed vehicle. In video provided by Amazon to instrumentality enforcement, she is seen slumped implicit successful the driver's spot arsenic the motortruck travels up to a driveway.

When questioned by investigators, the suspect confessed and added respective details astir the fatal violence.

"We person determined that, successful fact, Mr. Coy saw the Amazon operator going down the road," Lawrence County Sheriff Chris Berry said. "He past retreated backmost to his home, got his weapon, came backmost up and waited for the Amazon operator to travel backmost by. And past that's erstwhile helium changeable them."

After that, Coy removed Taylor from the vehicle, dragged her on the roadworthy and near the still-breathing pistillate successful a ditch.

The unfortunate had been changeable successful the caput with a pellet rifle, though astatine archetypal authorities did not recognize she had been shot, according to a study by Joplin-based radio presumption KZRG. She was taken to Mercy Hospital Joplin wherever doctors, hours later, told instrumentality enforcement astir the projectile successful the woman's head.

Taylor died connected Feb. 9, 2025.

Coy was charged the adjacent day. He was initially arrested for assault, and the complaint was past upgraded to first-degree murder.

"It's conscionable truly bittersweet due to the fact that determination is nary consciousness to what occurred whatsoever," the sheriff said astatine the time. "It's precise affectional due to the fact that of the senselessness of what occurred. It conscionable makes nary consciousness wherefore idiosyncratic could beryllium truthful aggravated to bash thing similar this."

Authorities hinted astatine a apt motive but kept mum astir the circumstantial crushed for the violence.

"We person a motive, but we're not going to speech astir it conscionable yet," Berry told Ozarks First.

Neighbors who spoke with KZRG said Coy had often complained astir the velocity of transportation vehicles connected the region road.

"It's precise scary, certainly," the sheriff added. "And it's very, precise different. They did not cognize each different astatine all. He saw the idiosyncratic going down the road, retreats to his spot of residence, retrieved the pellet firearm and past waited for them to travel back."

Colin Kalmbacher contributed to this story