(Sunil Karakowski of the Coon Rapids, Minn. CSI Dept. poses next to the car where Sid Jakanoski was shot. Courtesy of TruthBrush)
Coon Rapids, Minn. (TruthBrush) – Sid Jakanoski was a man likely to be remembered for his love of polka, generosity, and competitive personality. It was, after all, his competitive streak that caused him to create the world famous “shotgun” game used to claim the front seat in a car. Unfortunately his penchant for competition led to his ultimate demise.
Jakanoski was killed yesterday outside of Duluth after playing the “shotgun” game with a man carrying a gun of the same name. He was 62. Harvey Mankin, 56, is charged with shooting Jakanoski and would face life in prison if convicted.
Witnesses say the shooting occurred as a direct result of the game itself. According to Missy Hagosloski, who witnessed the killing, Jakanoski was irate that Mankin broke a rule of the game that states, “A person shall only call shotgun when the automobile of choice in plain sight.” Jakanoski, according to Hagosloski, claimed Mankin called “shotgun” from an angle that made actual visual confirmation of the car in question impossible.
“It was a junk call,” said Hagosloski. “That guy [Mankin] couldn’t even see the car. It was around the corner!”
Jakanoski, a Coon Rapids native, began shouting at Mankin that the call was “poo.” As they neared the car, according Hagosloski, Mankin refused to give up the front seat, prompting Jakanoski to push Mankin from behind as he tried to open the door. As Mankin stumbled away from the front passenger side door, he turned wielding a 12 gauge shotgun and fired twice into Jakanoski’s chest.
Police Capt. Sammy Terahawsky, a friend of Jakanoski’s, called it, “… a sad day for shotgunners everywhere.”
“He was a stubborn and competitive man,” said Capt. Terahawsky. “He really took pride in the fact that he created something that became known all over the state, and the world for that matter.”
Jakanoski’s ex-wife, Henrietta Oski, 59, said she was there when he created the game.
“It was 1967, and we were attending St. Cloud State University,” started Oski. “One day four of us were going to the movies and an argument started about who got to sit up front. Sid, being the who he was, refused to give it up without some sort of competition. So later that night, he sat down and created rules about calling the front seat. He loved hunting, so he called the game ‘shotgun’. I just can’t believe he was killed by one.”
Police are awaiting toxicology reports on Mankin, who was known to have a few chardonnays before breakfast, lunch, and dinner, before making a statement. Missy Hagosloski, for one, believes Mankin should have to play the shotgun game with a grizzly bear as punishment.
“He [Mankin] took away the man created a game that entertains the world. We are talking about a hero of competition and fair play,” said Hagosloski. “A bear fight is the only way to go.”
Henrietta Oski chooses to remember Jakanoski as, “… someone who created and lived the American dream.”
Jakanoski is survived by his ex-wife, two and a half kids, a white-washed fence, and a 1992 Chrysler LeBaron.
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