Former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Jake E. Lee is currently recovering and said he is “doing surprisingly well” after being shot three times on early Tuesday (October 15th) near his home in Las Vegas.
As previously reported, Lee was involved in a random street shooting about 10 miles from the Las Vegas Strip while the guitarist was in his driveway about to walk his dog. Lee was placed in a nearby hospital’s intensive care unit and is “expected to fully recover” per a statement from his representative.
The day after the shooting, Wednesday (October 16th), fellow guitarist and Las Vegas resident DJ Ashba (formerly of Guns N’ Roses) posted a text message exchange he had with Lee on his Instagram stories [via Blabbermouth].
In the exchange, Ashba asked if Jake was OK, to which he replied: “Doing surprisingly well. I am one lucky mother f**ker. Just make sure your bday bash is wheelchair accessible! Just jestin.’”
Further details have now emerged regarding the shooting, which law enforcement deemed random gunfire.
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Lee was in his driveway about to walk his dog at about 2:40 a.m. when he was shot in the forearm, the back, and in the foot. None of the shots hit a vital organ, though the shot to his back broke one of his ribs. Lee’s dog was unharmed, and a neighbor who heard the shots called 911.
“No arrests have been made at this time,” the Las Vegas Police Department said in a statement. “This is an ongoing investigation.”
Following news of the shooting, Ozzy Osbourne — whose albums Bark at the Moon (1983) and The Ultimate Sin (1986) featured Lee on guitar — issued the following statement to TMZ:
“It’s been 37 years since I’ve seen Jake E. Lee, but that still doesn’t take away from the shock of hearing what happened to him today,” said Osbourne in a statement released to TMZ on Tuesday night . “It’s just another senseless act of gun violence. I send my thoughts to him and his beautiful daughter, Jade. I just hope he’ll be ok.”
Lee, 67, has stepped away from music in recent years as he deals with cartilage damage in his hands. Prior to the shooting, the guitarist had been undergoing cortisone shots and physical therapy for pain management.
