A Missouri man with a crescent tattoo between his eyes has been charged in the November 2021 fatal shooting of Stephon D. Johnson, whose body was found inside a Kansas City apartment closet, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.
27-year-old Perez D. Reed faces first-degree murder, armed criminal action, and two counts of fraudulent use of a credit/debit device.
According to court records, family members of Stephon Johnson’s family filed missing persons reports regarding Johnson, saying they had not spoken to him since Nov. 1, 2021.
Officers responded to Johnson’s apartment and found his body inside a closet. It was later determined to be Johnson. Inside the apartment, officers determined he had suffered a gunshot to the back of the head.
Officers also collected an empty cigarillo package. A check of DNA from that package later showed strong support that the defendant’s DNA was on the package.
When defendant was arrested in November 2021 on warrants issued from St. Louis County a key was found with the defendant. The key fit a deadbolt lock at the victim’s apartment in Kansas City.
Witnesses also told police that a man they had seen on the news as a “serial killer” from St. Louis was the same man with a crescent tattoo who had been a guest of Johnson in Kansas City. Also, the deadly bullet found inside the victim in his Kansas City residence was fired by the firearm that the defendant had in possession at the time of his arrest.
The defendant is in custody in St. Louis. Prosecutors here recommended he be held on these new charges on no bond.
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