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71-year-old Lyft driver wished wife a happy anniversary before he was shot and killed on the job

Posted at 9:46 AM, Jul 31, 2019
and last updated 2019-07-31 10:48:34-04

PHOENIX — Phoenix police detectives are searching for a gunman who shot and killed a 71-year-old Lyft driver early Sunday morning.

Police say Harold Treadwell III was on duty when a gunman shot a bullet into his car. It's unclear how far he drove before he swerved across the median and crashed his car.

"We don't know much more than he suffered a gunshot wound and died," Sgt. Maggie Cox said. "We are really depending on anybody that we have not already talked to call us."

Investigators did not say the shooting was random, but they also said there is no indication that Treadwell was targeted or that anything led up to the gunfire.

Treadwell was originally from Indiana and moved to Arizona in 2003. According to a Facebook post by his wife, Frances, the couple was celebrating their 52nd wedding anniversary Sunday.

"Today is our 52nd wedding anniversary and we spoke right before he was killed and wished each other a HAPPY ANNIVERSARY (thank you God for allowing me to have that last conversation with him so I could tell him that I loved him!)" Frances Treadwell wrote, according to a GoFundMe page for her husband.

Treadwell was a great-grandfather who loved to pan for gold, play golf and tennis, and spend time with family, according to his son.

"We are deeply saddened and shocked by this loss. Our sympathies go out to the loved ones of Harold Treadwell and all those impacted by this tragedy. We are actively assisting law enforcement and will continue helping in any way we can," a Lyft spokesperson said in a statement.

This story was originally published by Zach Crenshaw on KNXV in Phoenix.