The family of a trucker who was shot after approaching a motorist has come forward, explaining what the driver told them just moments before he was killed.
On December 1st, truck driver Jason Giles was shot and killed after leaving his rig and confronting a motorist on an exit ramp of the Palmetto Expressway in Miami, Florida. Investigators say they’re still unsure of what started the altercation, but Giles’ family recently shared what he told them on the phone just before he was killed.
“He kept on telling his grandmother that there was a black Nissan Altima that kept on cutting him off and brake checking him and cutting him off and brake checking him,” said Vanessa Giles, Jason’s sister-in-law.
“After that he said ‘I have to go.’ He hung up the phone and that’s the last we all heard from him,” she said.
The driver of the Nissan, Felix Valdes Jr., claimed he opened fire in self defense and has not been charged, but one detail has Jason’s family questioning the validity of the investigation – the gun used to kill Jason Giles is now nowhere to be found.
Investigators report that the gun was lost at some point during the altercation between Giles and Valdes, but Jason’s family is skeptical.
“We don’t understand how the gun goes missing,” continued Vanessa Giles.
“If you’re claiming self-defense, how do you lose the gun?”
Investigators have searched the area near the scene of the crime for traces of the lost gun, but have yet to find any clues regarding its whereabouts.
Still without answers, the Giles family is forced to approach the holiday season from a different angle this year.
“Our holidays are never going to be the same… Instead of planning a holiday party or trying to figure out what we’re going to do for Christmas or New Years, we’re planning a funeral.”
The investigation into the incident is ongoing and anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of the gun is urged to call Miami-Dade crime stoppers at (305) 471-8477.