Murder charge filed months after shooting of KC area reporter on I-29
Investigators used cellphone data and surveillance footage to link a man to the killing of a Kansas City area sports reporter in January, authorities said.
Ruslan Huseynov, 34, was charged Wednesday with second-degree murder in the killing of Dennis Sharkey Jr., as well as unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action in Platte County Circuit Court.
Huseynov is being held in the Platte County Jail without bond.
“I can’t say enough about the dogged determination of investigators who refused to give up on this difficult case,” Platte County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Zahnd said Wednesday in a press conference.
Sharkey, 50, a reporter with the Platte County Citizen, was fatally shot along Interstate 29 near Northwest 72nd Street on Jan. 10. In the months since the killing, loved ones urged anyone with information about what happened to come forward.
Authorities said Huseynov was arrested Tuesday and in an interview “adamantly” denied owning a gun. His residence was searched Tuesday evening, and a 9mm pistol, ammunition and a magazine were found in a safe in the man’s bedroom, according to court documents.
Investigators said a shell casing located at the shooting scene and a bullet removed from Sharkey’s body matched the pistol found in Huseynov’s residence.
Law enforcement officers responded to the shooting in Platte County after a couple driving along I-29 the evening of Jan. 10 and saw two vehicles come to a stop on the roadway, according to court documents.
The couple reported they had to stop for the vehicles, and as they pulled around them, they saw one of the drivers get out with a gun in his hand. They saw the man point the weapon at the other car and heard a gunshot as they drove off, according to court documents.
Sharkey, the victim of the shooting, was found unresponsive in his vehicle and was pronounced dead at an area hospital.
Cellphone tower records led investigators to a phone number that belonged to Huseynov, and investigators said based on the data and surveillance footage on I-29, they believed Huseynov’s phone was in the other vehicle that stopped on the interstate highway.
Investigators tracked the cellphone to liquor stores in Liberty and Platte City, and using surveillance from those businesses, they identified a gray Hyundai Elantra that had a dealer tag, according to court documents. In March, Huseynov was pulled over in Pleasant Valley for a traffic violation and was driving the same vehicle that was seen at the liquor stores, authorities said.
Sharkey’s family previously told The Star they believed the incident stemmed from a case of road rage. But investigators are still unsure.
“We actually still don’t know what really led up to the shooting,” Zahnd said. “It certainly has all the elements of road rage. But at the end of the day, we don’t know.”
Nancy Montaleone, Sharkey’s mother, declined to speak with media at the press conference. She stood tearfully next to Zahnd, holding a photo of Sharkey in her hands.
This story was originally published June 11, 2025 at 5:33 PM.
