Man Who Mocked Ex-Wife at Karaoke Now Accused of Killing Her New Boyfriend While He Sang Linkin Park Song

An Ohio man is under arrest in connection with the murder of his ex-wife’s boyfriend, who was gunned down while singing karaoke at a bar. 

Benjamin Hawk, 42, was found dead by authorities responding to a shooting at a bar in Buckeye Lake, Ohio, on Friday, July 11, the Licking County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. Police promptly named Richard Lindgren as a suspect in the shooting.

On Saturday, the Licking County sheriff announced Lindgren had been arrested in South Carolina.

Hawk’s friends confirmed to ABC 6 that he was in a relationship with 59-year-old Lindgren’s ex-wife.

On the night of the shooting, the couple arrived at the bar about an hour before Lindgren, DJ Robert Humble told the outlet.  

Hawk and the woman were singing karaoke together when the shooting occurred, The Columbus Dispatch and ABC 6 reported. Hawk was singing Linkin Park’s song, ‘One More Light,’ Humble said. 

Witnesses said they did not see any altercations between Lindgren and Hawk before the shooting, ABC 6 reported. Humble told the outlet that Lindgren had been married to Hawk’s girlfriend up until a few months ago. 

“I sometimes saw Lindgren blurt out hateful words to his ex when she would get up to sing,” Humble said. “He would call her names and bash her character. I recently had a talk with him two weeks prior and told him if he was going to act like that, he was not welcome.”

Hawk was an up-and-coming karaoke singer and was known in the karaoke community, according to ABC 6 and The Columbus Dispatch. 

“He was using [karaoke] as a way to share his emotions with everybody else,” his brother David Hawk told The Columbus Dispatch.

In an online tribute, IKF Karaoke Cup Ohio, part of a nation-wide competitive karaoke community, said Hawk was “a larger than life presence with the voice of an angel.”

“He never met a stranger, just people that didn’t know they were friends yet,” read part of the tribute.

In a GoFundMe set up to assist with funeral costs and help his two daughters, David is remembering his brother as someone who “had the ability to converse with any and everyone.” 

“He always looked out for those around him and would give his very last to someone in need, even if it meant he had to go without,” David wrote in the fundraiser.

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The Licking County sheriff said in his statement that they were working on extraditing Lindgren back to Ohio.

It wasn’t immediately clear if Lindgren has been formally charged or hired an attorney.