Montana man arrested, charged in road rage assault outside Lakeville Walmart

A Montana man accused of beating a motorist during a road rage incident in Lakeville has been arrested in Kentucky two months after the incident. 

David Gene Beckett, 60, of Corvallis, Montana, is charged with third-degree assault and was arrested in Lancaster, Kentucky, on Dec. 23, 2021, in connection to the Oct. 27, 2021, incident.

Related: Walmart road rage assault: Victim seriously injured after attack outside Lakeville store

The 65-year-old victim, who family members have identified as Mark K. Henderson, of Burnsville, suffered a broken femur (thighbone) in the incident that required surgery to place a metal rod that will be there the rest of his life, charges say. 

Henderson is a U.S. Air Force veteran, he worked for Homeland Security at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and U.S. Border Patrol and was a North Dakota deputy, according to the Star Tribune.

The charges

According to the criminal complaint, the incident happened on Oct. 27, 2021, behind a Walmart in Lakeville. 

The day after the incident, Henderson, who was hospitalized, told police he exited from Interstate 35 near County Road 70 when he saw a Jeep following him. The vehicle was "extremely close" to his rear bumper, charges said. 

Henderson then parked in the handicapped parking spot. The driver of the Jeep, who was later identified as Beckett, parked "down from his vehicle" and confronted Henderson, yelling at him and accusing him of cutting him off. He also threatened to "beat" Henderson, the complaint said. 

Beckett followed Henderson to the entrance of Walmart and continued to scream at him. He asked Henderson to go around to the west side of the building, and Henderson followed believing he could reason with Beckett, charges said. 

Henderson asked Beckett where they were going, and he responded they were going somewhere without any cameras, charges said. When they got to the store's storage containers, Beckett punched Henderson in the chest and then Henderson used his right leg to keep Beckett at a distance. 

Beckett then grabbed Henderson's leg and pulled and twisted it, forcing Henderson to the ground, the complaint said. Henderson said he felt his leg break. 

As Henderson was falling to the ground, Beckett punched the top of his head, charges said. Henderson yelled at Beckett saying his leg was broken and Beckett fled on foot. 

Police obtained surveillance video from Walmart in an effort to identify the suspect, the complaint said. The video was then provided to the public. 

On Nov. 5, 2021, someone told police they believed the suspect was Beckett, noting they recently had business dealings with him. The caller said Beckett owns a business in Montana but had come to Minnesota to make a purchase from the caller. The caller had dealt with Beckett in person from Oct. 25-Oct. 27, 2021. 

Investigators learned Beckett had a reservation for Oct. 23, 2021, at Candlewood Suites in Lakeville, but he canceled it, the complaint said. He then stayed at Candlewood Suites locations in Iowa on Oct. 29, 2021; Danville, Kentucky, on Oct. 31, 2021; and Lexington, Kentucky on Nov. 3, 2021. 

He had also stayed in the Hampton Inn and Suites in Lakeville from Oct. 25-Oct. 28, 2021, charges said.

Beckett was charged via complaint warrant because, at the time, he hadn't yet been located or arrested.