4 charged in fatal Jefferson City shooting
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
Cole County prosecutors charged four people in connection with a fatal shooting after an alleged drug deal turned deadly last week.
Online court records say 21-year-old Landon Latall faces a count of second-degree murder linked to the killing of 18-year-old Orentheus Pitts on June 1. Byron D. Brown Jr., Jamari Todd and Darrell D. Jones each face felony charges in connection with the shooting.
Latall's probable cause statement alleges he planned to sell $40 worth of marijuana to Pitts in the parking lot of a Walgreens store at 3740 W. Truman Blvd. The court documents allege Brown, Todd and Jones were all in a car with Pitts.
Court documents say Pitts allegedly stole the marijuana from Latall without paying, Latall then opened fire, striking Pitts twice. Pitts was taken to the hospital in critical condition, documents say.
Capt. Derric Heislen with the police department said Pitts was pronounced dead just after midnight on Monday.
Jefferson City police said late on June 1 that officers received multiple calls about the shooting. Jones, Darrell and Brown were giving life-saving treatment to Pitts inside a car, officers said.
Todd allegedly threw the stolen marijuana into nearby woods and dropped the money for the drug deal into a sewer, according to court documents. Police say the drugs and money were recovered at the scene.
Latall turned himself in to the police department after the shooting. Officers say he mentioned the shooting was in self-defense and did not answer any other questions related to the incident.
Court records say Latall faces a count each of second-degree murder, delivery of marijuana and armed criminal action. The records say a hearing is scheduled for Friday in his case.
A Cole County Jail officer said Latall was in jail custody being held without bond as of Tuesday.
Todd was charged with a felony count of stealing a controlled substance and tampering with evidence. Darrell and Brown each face a felony charge for stealing a controlled substance.
