Belton woman dies after being shot, left in rural Miami County ditch on New Year’s Day
A 41-year-old woman who was found on New Year’s Day in a Miami County ditch suffering from a gunshot wound has died, according to the sheriff’s department.
Jennifer Christine Rodriguez, of Belton, died in a hospital late Tuesday afternoon, two days after she was rushed there by emergency medical personnel from rural Paola, the Miami County sheriff’s department said in a statement Wednesday.
On Sunday around 7:30 p.m., sheriff’s department deputies were dispatched to a call near 299th Street and Somerset Road for a person in the ditch — later identified as Rodriguez. Detectives on scene identified 36-year-old John R. Gray as a suspect in the shooting.
Authorities allege Gray and Rodriguez left Gray’s home in Grandview on Sunday and drove to Miami County, where the shooting unfolded. Authorities suspect Rodriguez was shot while she was inside Gray’s white pickup truck.
After the shooting, Gray allegedly removed Rodriguez from his vehicle and left her in the ditch before driving home.
On Tuesday, Grandview police found Gray dead inside his residence of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Police also towed away his pickup truck from the driveway to be processed by forensics investigators.
The Miami County Sheriff’s Office continued to investigate the shooting Wednesday.
