State Board of Administration official killed in apparent road-rage shootout
A spokesman for Florida’s State Board of Administration was shot and killed in an apparent road-rage incident last week near Tallahassee, according to law enforcement and news reports.
The driver of a Prius fatally shot John Kuczwanski, 52, outside a Circle K on Thursday after the two had pulled over following a collision, according to the Leon County Sheriff ’s Office and accounts by Florida Politics, the Tallahassee Democrat and other news organizations.
Florida Politics cited unnamed sources who said the incident began when Kuczwanski’s BMW veered out of its lane and hit the Prius, after which both drivers pulled into a parking lot.
The driver of the Prius confronted Kuczwanski, and then got back into his car to wait for law enforcement to investigate the accident, the sources told Florida Politics.
The exchange then escalated dramatically as “Kuczwanski rammed his BMW into the Prius on the driver’s door, and began pushing the car sideways in the parking lot,” according to the account. “Kuczwanski then shot a gun at the white Prius, according to the sources.”
The Prius driver, who also had a gun, shot and fired back into Kuczwanski’s windshield, striking him, the sources told Florida Politics.
The incident took place shortly after 5 p.m. in the area of 6700 Thomasville Road, near Bannerman Road.
Deputies and EMS attempted life saving measures for Kuczwanski on the scene. He was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Court records show Kuczwanski had been “arrested for a confrontation with another driver at the same intersection in December 2014,” WCTV reported Tuesday.
His wife, Rebekah Kuczwanski, posted on Twitter on Sunday that “John was the victim and lost his life. His family deserves time to heal and privacy. Why not report the shooter’s name? The man who assassinated him?
“Our whole lives are shattered,” she continued. “The children and I, his friends and family, so many who adored this wonderful, kind, loving man who would do anything for anyone. We are all devastated. The whole world lost a great man!”
The Sheriff’s Office has not released the Prius driver’s name. The department said in a statement Tuesday that it is still investigating, interviewing witnesses and reviewing surveillance video footage.
The Prius driver was taken into custody and released. No charges had been filed as of Tuesday, LCSO said.
The agency Kuczwanski worked for, the SBA, “is responsible for investing the Florida Retirement System’s pension plan and administering its investment plan,” the Democrat reported.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the LCSO Violent Crimes Unit at (850) 606-3300 or to remain anonymous contact Big Bend Crime Stoppers at (850) 574-TIPS (8477).