Former LVMS Truck Series race winner shot dead in Georgia

John Wes Townley, who won his lone contention successful 186 NASCAR starts astatine Las Vegas Motor Speedway, was fatally changeable Saturday adjacent Athens, Georgia.

According to a constabulary report, authorities responded to a study of a shooting astatine a residence. They arrived to observe Townley, his erstwhile wife, Laura, and a 3rd idiosyncratic connected the scene.

Townley and his erstwhile woman were transported to the hospital. Townley aboriginal died of his injuries. He was 31.

A preliminary probe said Townley had arrived astatine the determination and attacked his ex-wife and 32-year-old Zachary Anderson with a hatchet erstwhile Anderson fired respective shots from his gun. The shots struck Townley and his ex-wife, who was accidentally injured erstwhile struck successful the abdomen. Her injuries were described arsenic “serious,” though she is expected to survive.

Anderson was not charged successful the incident.

A quality study said Townley filed for divorcement successful February. The divorcement became authoritative past week.

Townley was the lad of Tony Townley, who co-founded the Zaxby’s chickenhearted edifice concatenation that has much than 600 locations successful the confederate U.S.

Townley won a Truck Series contention astatine Las Vegas Motor Speedway successful 2015 by staying connected the way erstwhile the leaders pitted for fuel. He finished eighth successful the Truck Series standings that year. He ran 110 races implicit six seasons and besides competed successful 76 Xfinity Series races implicit 8 years with a apical decorativeness of 23rd successful 2009.

In 2016, Townley and Spencer Gallagher, a erstwhile NASCAR operator from Las Vegas, were progressive successful a combat aft they crashed retired of a motortruck contention astatine World Wide Technology Raceway adjacent St. Louis.

Townley was fined $15,000 and placed connected probation aft the altercation.

Contact Ron Kantowski astatine rkantowski@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-383-0352. Follow @ronkantowski connected Twitter.