Gun store owner dies by suicide after illness, following negotiation with police

UPDATED to add details about Mr. Shepherd’s illness and quotes from his wife Theresa.

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An owner of a Parker gun store died by suicide in front of local law enforcement officers after negotiations with police following a long illness.

Kevin Shepherd, who ran Gold Pan Dan’s Guns and Gold on California Avenue in Parker, AZ with his wife Theresa King, the owner, was reportedly holding a gun and threatening to shoot himself when Parker Police Department arrived at the store on Sunday evening.

After around an hour of negotiations between Shepherd, Parker Police officers and La Paz County Sheriff’s Deputies, he shot himself and succumbed to his injuries, reportedly dying on scene.

Shepherd had been ill for some time. He had congestive heart failure, had had one leg removed several years ago and a threat of losing the second, and had been in a lot of pain recently, according to Theresa.

“He was dying,” she told Parker Live. “He just couldn’t take the pain anymore.”

Shepherd had been at the store, earlier called ‘Guns FX’, for several years. An incident in 2018 left staff with a significant cleanup job after a vehicle involved in a high-speed chase crashed through the front of the building and smashed the store to pieces.

On Sunday night, police had the area taped off for over an hour as they negotiated with Shepherd.

Kevin Shepherd is survived by his wife Theresa, who has opened the store to the public again, 6 children and 19 grandchildren.