Columbia man charged in relation to June 2023 Boone County double homicide investigation
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A Columbia man has been charged in relation to a June 2023 homicide investigation in Boone County.
Kenny Tyrone Jackson Jr., 18, of Columbia, was charged on Friday with tampering with physical evidence in felony prosecution. Jail records indicate that he was booked into the jail at 4:03 p.m. Friday. Court records show he posted a $50,000 surety bond the same day. An initial court appearance is set for 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 24.
According to the probable cause statement, Boone County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched on June 3, 2023, for a shots-fired call where two teenagers died.
Previous reporting indicates the shooting occurred in a vacant home in the 2600 block of East Oakbrook Drive. The sheriff's office previously said deputies responded after midnight on June 4. An additional four people were injured in the shooting, according to previous reporting. The probable cause statement says 12 cartridge cases were found at the scene and a witness allegedly stated Jackson was at the party before the shooting.
Previously, the Boone County Sheriff’s Office posted online later in June that it was receiving little cooperation from those who may have been at the house. Captain Brian Leer told ABC 17 News via text Monday that the department is still dealing with a lack of witnesses willing to provide information.
"We are still struggling to get any witnesses to come forward to provide information on the Oakbrook shooting and homicides," Leer wrote. "The witness statements referenced in that PC statement is not referencing any recent/new witness statements."
The probable cause statement says Jackson was involved in a crash on Feb. 4 near the intersection of West Worley Street and Anderson Avenue. A witness allegedly told police that they saw Jackson pull a gun out of the trunk of the vehicle and throw it in nearby bushes.
Officers found a handgun in the area of the crash, the probable cause statement says. Jackson allegedly told law enforcement that he threw it in the bushes because he knew police were responded. He claimed to have received the gun from a friend, but didn’t say who gave it to him, the probable cause statement says.
Later, Jackson allegedly told law enforcement that he bought the gun from an “unknown individual” and did not know it may have been used in a double homicide, the probable cause statement says. He allegedly admitted to law enforcement that he was at the party where the shooting occurred, the statement says.
Boone County Prosecutor Roger Johnson said in cases involving evidence tampering, prosecutors typically have to prove that the individual discarding of the evidence did so to avoid it being traced back to a crime,
"We have to show that the purpose... the person's purpose was to hinder its availability in a prosecution," Johnson said. "We have to prove that they did it with the purpose of hindering the investigation."
The gun was test-fired by law enforcement and test-fired cartridge cases were found, the statement says. The cartridge cases were submitted for a ballistics test and were determined to match the casings found on June 3, 2023, according to court documents.
