Wanted Fugitive Fatally Shot By Gun-Toting Kansas Farmer

Authorities have identified a 42-year-old Iowa fugitive who was fatally shot by a farmer in south-central Kansas.

Sumner County Sheriff Darren Chambers says Joseph L. Lamasters, remedy of Creston, this Iowa, cheap was wanted in that state for a probation violation stemming from drug charges.

KSN-TV reportsKansas authorities began searching for Lamasters after he left his ID at a Kansas Turnpike tollbooth Monday, apparently to retrieve money to pay the toll. That’s when authorities learned he was wanted in Iowa.

Lamasters ran into a wooded area and was spotted later Monday afternoon by a farmer. The farmer says he opened fire after Lamasters jumped out from a pile of feed sacks and threatened to kill him.

The sheriff says it was self-defense and he does not expect the farmer to be charged.

“I hate to see him in this position, but he did what he felt like he had to do,” Sheriff Darren Chambers said. “He wanted to protect his family.”-[source]