On an April afternoon in Stillwater, Oklahoma, a life was unexpectedly cut short, leaving a family and community to grapple with the sudden loss. Landon Ray Aufleger, a 25-year-old male, was fatally shot on April 14, 2022. Born on March 25, 1997, in Stillwater, Landon was a father to four children and was pursuing a career in music while also working as an electrician.
The events that led to his death began with a physical altercation inside the Headliner Barber Shop on South Main
Street. The conflict spilled out into the parking lot. Following the fight, Landon left the scene in his vehicle, driving eastbound. It was then that multiple gunshots were fired at his car. His vehicle ultimately struck a parked car a block away from the barbershop, near 12th and Lewis Street. When police and medical personnel arrived at approximately 5:26 p.m., they found Landon inside his vehicle and, despite life-saving efforts, he was pronounced deceased at the scene from an apparent gunshot wound.
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, Stillwater police arrested 25-year-old Darrin Joseph Bacchus outside the barbershop. He was taken into custody and became the primary suspect in Landon's death. However, the legal proceedings that followed painted a more complex picture of the incident. Bacchus claimed that he had been assaulted by four individuals inside the barbershop and that he acted in self-defense.
During his trial, Bacchus testified that he was attacked and feared for his life. He stated that after the initial assault, he heard someone mention getting a gun. He retrieved his own firearm from his vehicle and fired at Landon's fleeing car, testifying that he believed he was about to be shot at. The case went to a Payne County jury, and after deliberation, Darrin Joseph Bacchus was acquitted of first-degree manslaughter.
