In a recent Facebook post, Jake E. Lee confirmed he argued with thieves before the shooting.
“Thank you again for all your concern. A quick update: back home recuperating,” the guitarist wrote, along with a photo of his dog. “A big thanks to those at Sunrise Hospital for taking such good care of me. And some brief details about that night. Walking home from our walk Coco and I crossed paths with a couple of thieves.”
He recalled, “Dressed darkly, hoodies pulled down their faces and masks covering their mouths. Standing in a neighbor’s driveway checking out his motorcycle. There was a verbal confrontation which ended with an agreement that I would walk one way and they would walk the opposite.
“That didn’t work out. I’ll probably talk in more detail about it later but right now I can only comfortably do a little at a time. Let me look for another cute pic of Coco!” Lee added.
Lee was shot three times about 10 miles from the Las Vegas Strip on October 15. He was taken to the ICU. TMZ said the shooting happened at 2:40 a.m. while Lee was walking his dog. SiriusXM’s Eddie Trunk shared that Jake was shot in the chest, arm, and foot.
The bullets missed most major organs, except for his lung, but he is expected to recover fully. Eddie got this info from Jake’s manager. Police think the shooting was random, and no more details are available since the investigation is ongoing.
Guitarist D.J. Ashba, who lives in Las Vegas, shared a text conversation with Jake on his Instagram Stories. Ashba texted Lee and said, “Please tell me you’re okay??”
The guitarist replied, “Doing surprisingly well. I am one lucky mother f*cker. Just make sure your bday bash is wheelchair accessible! Just jestin’” Ashba then said: “So fn thankful you’re ok! Naha! U got it bro!”
Ozzy Osbourne also shared a statement for his former guitarist after the shooting but some fans found it fake. Eddie Trunk tweeted that Lee should be paid and credited for his work on ‘Bark At The Moon’ after Osbourne’s support. Many commenters agreed. They criticized the lack of payment to Lee and other musicians who worked with Ozzy.