Investigators say woman drove Lexington murder suspect to and from the crime scene

After Lexington investigators previously charged a teen with murder, a new suspect is facing charges related to a 43-year-old man’s shooting death.

Paula Kanatzer, 20, is charged with facilitating murder after Justin Cooke was shot and killed last month. Kanatzer admitted to driving the suspect, 19-year-old Marquan King, to and from the shooting scene, according to an arrest citation.

King was charged with murder, second-degree assault and possession of a handgun by a convicted felon after the shooting. It happened March 17 at the Marathon gas station in the 300 block of North Martin Luther King Boulevard, police said.

A woman was also shot and her injuries were not life-threatening, police said.

The citation states Kanatzer, who’s from Lexington, admitted to hearing gunshots, and that the “suspect she drove to and from the homicide location intentionally shot the victim.”

Kanatzer’s charges were filed in Fayette District Court on March 22 and her first court appearance was scheduled for 1 p.m. Tuesday. Lexington police Sgt. Guy Miller confirmed the two cases were connected.

Lexington police testified previously that King was identified as the shooter by his girlfriend based on a description of the clothes he was wearing when he shot Cooke and the woman, according to Detective Nicholas Music with Lexington police.

An ankle monitor also placed King at the scene of the murder, according to Music. King told detectives he rolled through the parking lot the day of the shooting, Music said.

A second man, Lamont Clayborne, 21, was arrested and charged with evidence tampering in the same case, police said. Clayborne was observed fleeing from police with an ankle monitor that had been removed, according to court documents. Clayborne was later discharged from jail via administrative release, according to court records.

King’s case has been sent to a Fayette County grand jury.

Reporter Chris Leach contributed to this story.

Updated: Coroner identifies man who died after shooting at Lexington gas station

Police: Ankle monitor, girlfriend’s statements pin Lexington murder suspect at crime scene