Family, friends remember shooting victim as a proud family man with big goals
May 19—Landon Aufleger, the 25-year-old man killed on April 14 in a shooting at the intersection of 12th and Main Street, started his day like he usually did, being with his family. Baylee Phillips, his girlfriend, said their family spent the day at Couch Park for a field trip.
"It was just a little field trip for the first- and second-graders, and they got to spend the day at Couch Park, and they had an Easter egg hunt. and they just got to pretty much play most of the school day, and me Landon and our other children went because they don't go to school," she said.
After they left the park, she said they went to get food before Aufleger dropped her and the kids off at home. She said this was the last time she saw him.
"We went and got something to eat at McDonald's. and then he dropped me and our babies off at home — he didn't even eat his McDonald's at home with us he took his food to go — ," she said. "And he went to go help his friends move and then it was not even 45 minutes later, I saw an article posted on Facebook telling everybody to stay away from 12th and Main."
Finding out about the shooting
Phillips said she was cleaning her room when the shooting happened. She sat down on her bed to take a break, and she saw the Facebook posts warning people to stay away from the area of 12th and Main Street.
"(It said) there's at least one victim, and so I actually shared that article and I sent it to Landon on Facebook Messenger. and I said, 'Do you know what's going on?' and he didn't even open my message. So then I was like, OK, that's weird. So then I'm messaging him again, and I said, 'Where are you at? Are you good?' He didn't open my message again. So that's when I started calling him, and he wasn't answering," she said.
Camari Aufleger, Landon's mom — who lives in Oklahoma City — said she received a frantic phone call from Phillips asking if she had heard from Landon. She hadn't.
"She hung up, and I'm like, wait a minute, her voice ... and so I called her back, and she said there's a hostage situation at the barbershop. and there's already been a fatality. and I said, 'Oh God, Baylee, don't tell me that," Camari said through tears. "And I got on my knees and started praying to God. and I can hear my son saying, 'I'm so sorry, momma, I'm so sorry."
Phillips said once Aufleger didn't answer his mom's call she called his dad because if he was OK, he would answer his phone for his dad.
"If he's going to answer anybody's phone call, it's going to be his parents. So she called him (but) he didn't answer," Phillips said. "So I was like, 'OK, I'm calling his dad' because for sure (if) he doesn't answer his dad's phone call, there's something wrong. His dad called me back and said he didn't answer. So then my heart just dropped. and I think I hung up on him."
Phillips said she grabbed her small children, put them in the car, and took them to her mom's house. She headed toward Headliners barbershop to look for Landon since he wasn't answering his phone. When she arrived, she said she instantly knew something was wrong with how people treated her.
Arriving on the scene
"I pulled up to the gas station because everything was blocked off ... by the time I pulled up, there were probably 100 people in the parking lot ... I'm just asking everybody, 'Where's Landon? Where's Landon?'"
Phillips continued and said, "I remember that moment so clearly. Nobody would tell me anything. and so I just went up to one person. and I said, 'Where's Landon? Where's Landon?' They just looked at me ... they would not open their mouth or anything. So I just went to the next person. and the next person that I saw that I recognized was Rico ... and I remember this so clearly. I said, 'Where is Landon? Where's Landon?' and he just looked at me, and he said, 'he's gone. He's dead.' and so I just dropped to my knees. and I remember he patted me on my back and said, 'if you want justice for him, you're gonna have to calm down ... That's how I was told that Landon was dead."
Aufleger's family lost him that day, but they said they wanted his memory to live on even though he died. He was more than just a shooting victim, his family said. To them, he was a bright light in their life, always joking and always saying "Luh Ya Bye" before he left. To the community, he was a musician, often playing shows in local bars and at Headliners. and to four little kids, he was "daddy."
A knack for music
Camari said her son started making music as a child, which was one of his big passions. Although she said most people want fame, Aufleger only spoke about making the community and his loved ones' lives better.
"When I think of who Landon was, I immediately think of a fun outgoing young man with a drive for success for not just his family but for his community. He spoke on his vision of bringing business together and growing our community with everyone's talents and gifts. He was a man who was all about growth. He loved his family (and) his kids were always his priority," she said.
She said he was genuine, and people like him don't come around every day.
Pull Quote
Marshon Carthen, a close friend of Aufleger, said Landon's drive for music was unmatched, and he had big plans in his life, plans he had worked on for years.
He played his music at several different venues in Stillwater and a few in the city. He was born and raised here and wanted to produce his music in Stillwater because Stillwater had his heart, Carthen said.
"Here, it was more of just being enthused about getting the music into the local bars because that's where it was, and that's where it began to start ... really just promoting the music, and the bars were starting to get aware of it and plan it," he said. "And so that's where we started. and that was the first step as far as, not more shows, but just really getting the town of Stillwater to hear the music first."
Who was Landon?
Aufleger's life will live on in the lives of those who loved him and held him close. His family spoke about his big heart and said he was very family-oriented.
"He had so much life. Like I look at people, and I'm like, you don't even appreciate your life. and I'm one of those people. ... But he appreciated life, he loved life," Camari said. "He loved people he loved his community. and then I look at people, and I'm like, you're still here. My baby's gone. and he wanted to be here he was. He was happy."
Phillips said Aufleger always put her and the kids first. He did whatever he had to do to ensure they could thrive. Phillips and Aufleger met when they were teens, and she said he was the love of her life.
"We got together whenever he was 16 years old. and I'm a year older than him. So I was 17 about to turn 18. and I had a three-month-old daughter with somebody else, but her father has never been in her life. and so I mean, since she was three months old, he was her dad. She doesn't even know any different," she said. "We did everything together. He was never an absent father ... and we're young parents, but he tried since he was 16 years old. and he's always trying to find work, whether he's doing side jobs or while he's an electrician. He was doing side jobs and doing his music. Like that's three jobs ... he always made it work somehow, someway for us to not only be able to live but for our kids to be able to do fun things and live a good life."
Phillips said one of their children suffers from a rare genetic disease called Rhett's Syndrome which left one of their daughters wheel-chair bound, and she has to have 24-hour care. His family said Aufleger's music often contained lyrics about the condition.
Although the shooting is still being investigated, his family said he didn't know a fight would break out, and if he did, he wouldn't have been there because he's not confrontational.
"The way the case may go about him trying to back up (Darren Bacchus), that's not him, that's not Slick. He would have done anything to protect his family, but he's not a killer," Carthen said. "So we want that to be known that we don't want this case to take (away) from his this life. We don't want his character to be killed. Through it all, that's what he strived to be. A good man, a good father, and a good person to this community."
One of Aufleger's cousins, Varon Terrel (Tubbs), said Landon was a dream chaser who pushed the limits and thought outside the box.
"He had the world in his hands," Tubbs said.
Aufleger's family wanted people to know that he loved the community and was one of the funniest people. Many loved him, and they hoped to honor his wishes even after his death.
"He still has music that and we what he did is he will he had built a record label. He still has artists. We still have the merchandise and things like that, that we will tie into his music and still promote him. We want to start a nonprofit organization for the disease. We want to push that want to continue to try to get people to be aware of that because it's so rare," Carthen said. "We have to do the things that he wanted, and it seemed like he already had these kinds of things in place. That's why he was kind of trying to get everybody ready and set. We're like, okay, this was his vision. and we have to make sure that we do his vision the way he wants."
Phillips said her kids are having a difficult time, but she still finds herself waiting for him to come home.
"It's pretty hard. I still feel like I'm in shock ... now that it's been a month, and now that it's getting longer now. It's kind of starting to hit me differently. Because now I'm starting to feel weird (because) he's never been gone this long, and he's still not here. So I don't think I've started the grieving process. But I think I'm getting really close," she said.
Their oldest son has struggled with his father's death. Phillips said the two of them did everything together, so it's been difficult on him.
"He's about the only one who's having a really hard time. He will just cry. Cry randomly," Phillips said. "Landon made a lot of music. He made a lot of videos. So, he's constantly listening to the songs (and) watching his dad's YouTube videos."
Camari said Landon was a piece of her, and losing him has taken a toll on her. She said she misses him every day, and things haven't been the same since he died.
"Maybe God did just sent him here to be our angel for a little bit. To teach us to love everybody. To respect everybody and don't fight because he would always tell me ... 'Mom, life is too short. Don't fight with people. Just let that s--- go. It's small stuff. Let it go.' He was like the backbone to all of us. He kept us grounded. He kept us together."
