Cole County prosecutors charge 2 more in connection with December shooting
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
On Friday, Cole County prosecutors filed charges against two men accused of involvement with a late December shooting.
Virgil Cooper, 61, and Joseph Cooper, 32, now face multiple felony crimes linked to a suspected break-in that left one man with a gunshot wound. Prosecutors previously filed charges against a third man, Jeremiah Willis, for the same incident.
Probable cause statements say Cole County deputies responded to a residence in the 10000 block of Deer Run Drive on Dec. 27, 2020, after receiving reports of a shooting.
Witnesses told investigators that Willis was involved in the shooting. The probable cause statements said the day before the shooting, Willis and two other men kidnapped the victim from the residence on Deer Run Drive and taken to a home in Eugene. The witnesses told deputies that the three men were armed with knives during the alleged kidnapping.
Joseph Cooper's charging documents said he admitted to deputies that he and Virgil were with Willis when the victim was taken from the residence. The documents said Cooper also admitted that the victim may have been hit a couple of times during the incident but that he didn't see it happen.
Investigators said the victim had a broken nose after being hit with the butt of a shotgun. The victim told deputies all three men were making threats during the encounter.
According to the court documents, the victim was allowed to leave the residence after being held there for about 12 hours. Joseph Cooper said in the probable cause statement that the victim was apparently free to leave at any time.
The probable cause statements did not say what led up to the shooting or the alleged kidnapping and assault.
The Coopers face four felony charges each in the case. Willis was charged with a count each of first-degree robbery, first-degree assault and armed criminal action.
A release from the Moniteau County Sheriff's Office said deputies and investigators with the Mid-Mo Drug Task Force arrested Willis on Jan. 13 at a residence in Moniteau County.
