Fort Worth road rage shooting victim’s dash camera leads police directly to his accused killer

The Brief

• An arrest warrant affidavit for Koby Burkhart, 22, details how police linked him to the murder of Ricky Langs, 62, and tracked him down.

• Police say Burkhart shot and killed Langs last week in a road rage shooting on East Loop 820.

• Police say Langs’ dash camera captured the whole ordeal and helped them easily find their suspect.

• The documents say Burkhart tried to change his license plate and hide his Chevy SUV under a tarp. They say he initially claimed he shot Langs because he had a gun and was afraid of him.

• Police did not find any weapons in Langs’ vehicle.

FORT WORTH, Texas – Fort Worth police say the man arrested for a deadly road rage shooting tried to cover his tracks before admitting to the crime.

Police say dash camera footage showed the suspect shooting and killing the victim. They say he later tried to change his license plate and hid his Chevy SUV under a tarp.

What we know

Fort Worth police arrested 22-year-old Koby Burkhart on Monday, charging him with murder for a road rage shooting last week.

Dash camera from victim Ricky Langs’ car captured the shooting on Jan. 27. It shows him honking at Burkhart in a roundabout.

Later at a stoplight, Burkhart pulled up beside Langs and two gunshots could be heard on the video.

Langs lost control of his car and crashed into a median near the northbound lanes on East Loop 820.

What’s New

Court documents obtained by FOX 4 on Wednesday reveal Langs’ dash camera footage led police directly to Burkhart.

Police say Burkhart replaced the license plates on his Chevy Equinox, and his mom brought him a blue tarp to hide it from police.

When officers searched Burkhart’s house, they found the real license plates and the gun used in the shooting. It was hidden in a crawl space.

After his arrest, Burkhart claimed Langs had a gun. However, he couldn’t describe the gun other than “it was probably black,” according to court documents.

Burkhart claimed he was afraid Langs would shoot him, so he admitted he fired two shots at the victim, the documents state.

Langs did not have a gun in his car.

What they’re saying

Langs’ daughter, Shelby Johnson, says she had no idea her dad had a dash camera in his car.

“I never knew that he did. And I thank God that he did have a dash cam in his car,” she said. “Because we probably wouldn’t have known this soon who was the person that did it.”

Johnson says the hardest part was hearing what the dash camera caught after her dad was shot.

“It broke me down because I can just hear him in my head,” she said. “His voice just saying, ‘I’ve been shot. I’ve been shot.’ And there’s no one there to help him.” 

While nothing will bring her dad back, Johnson says getting Burkhart off the streets brings some closure.

“It’s just sad. You’re just now starting your life, and now you’re just not going to have a life to live now because you’re going to be locked up,” she said. “Them finding his killer won’t bring him back to us, but justice has been served. And I’m grateful for the investigators and how they took time and did everything and to the conclusion who it was.”

What’s next

Johnson says she plans to be at every court proceeding to see her dad get the justice he deserves.

The Source

Information in this article comes from an arrest affidavit for Koby Burkhart, the Fort Worth Police Department and interviews with Ricky Langs’ daughter.