The saying goes that “birds of a feather flock together,” and for former Turkey Leg Hut owner Lynn Price, the FBI claims that included arsonists who allegedly helped him “blow up” his competition.
Price was arrested on Thursday, May 1, following a federal indictment related to a 2020 arson-for-hire plot he allegedly orchestrated against his one-time business partner, Steven Rogers. According to Click 2 Houston, the current Oyster Hut owner conspired with Armani Williams and John Lee Price to set fire to Bar 5015 on June 12, 2020. Federal prosecutors allege that Williams and Lee Price carried out the crime in the early morning hours after procuring gasoline and face coverings. The pair then “poured gasoline across the deck and down the entrance ramp” and later called Price to confirm the arson.
Price pleaded not guilty during his arraignment. Prosecutors demanded to hold him without bail because he poses a “danger to the community” after presenting several menacing text messages allegedly sent to Rogers and Turkey Leg Hut employees. One of the messages was between Price and a former general manager for the popular Houston restaurant, who claims she remains scared of her former boss to this day.
“I will come to your house and kill that dog … stop playing and I mean it,” the alleged text message from Price read.
She also presented other profanity and threat-riddled text exchanges that defended her assertion that her former boss was not above violence.
Federal Prosecutors Claim Lynn Price Made Ex-Business Partner Steven Rogers An Offer He Couldn’t Refuse On 5015
Rogers claims that his trouble with Price began when he refused to allow the Turkey Leg Hut owner to buy into Bar 5015. He alleges that Price presented him with a box of cash that he ultimately returned. After being rejected, he claims that Price became irate and threatened to “blow the place up” as he felt the new restaurant would become competition for him. Price’s defense team vehemently denied Rogers’ claims.
“If Lynn Price was motivated to set a competing business on fire, why didn’t he target other related businesses?” said Price’s defense attorney, Chuck Egbuonu, during the arraignment.
Though Price has denied any involvement in the crime, both Williams and Lee Price shared details of the crime with the FBI during separate confessions. Lee Price also alleges that he regularly procured stolen goods, including ATVs, cars, and engines for Price, who would later sell or strip the products. He also claims that Price used the Turkey Leg Hut for drug trafficking. Lee Price alleges that he traveled to California to bring back 500-1,000 pounds of marijuana that were housed at the restaurant due to the 24-hour security surveillance system on the property.
During Price’s arrest, officers recovered two shotguns, three rifles, a pistol, a flame thrower, 960 rounds of various ammo, magazines, and one firearm emblazoned with the Turkey Leg Hut logo. Prosecutors noted that one of the weapons was stolen, and several others were registered under other names. They also pointed out Price’s history of violence, including an alleged assault on his then-pregnant girlfriend, Lynn Price, in 2021 and a 2022 incident involving a 54-year-old man who claims Price choked and pushed him at a lounge.
Well, it certainly seems that Price’s turkeys are coming home to roost.
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