Police Make Arrest in a Series of Random Shootings in Missouri

It started extracurricular St. Louis successful mid-September, erstwhile a antheral waiting astatine a autobus halt was changeable and severely injured by a stranger. The adjacent day, the assemblage of a teenage miss changeable successful the backmost of the caput was recovered successful the aforesaid neighborhood.

The unsolved shootings continued done the autumn successful impoverished Black neighborhoods crossed St. Louis and successful Kansas City, Kan., 250 miles west. The authorities had nary fishy and fewer clues, but the Missouri shootings had 1 captious happening successful common: .40-caliber Smith & Wesson cartridge casings from the aforesaid handgun had been recovered astatine each location.

On Monday, instrumentality enforcement authorities successful Missouri announced that they had arrested and charged a 25-year-old antheral suspected of sidesplitting six radical and injuring 2 others successful what appeared to beryllium a bid of random attacks.

The man, Perez D. Reed, who turns 26 connected Wednesday, was charged with 4 counts of first-degree execution aft the constabulary tracked his cellphone and arrested him carrying a limb that had been linked to each six shootings successful Missouri.

The shootings of the antheral who was severely wounded astatine the autobus halt connected Sept. 12 and the teenage miss the adjacent time were lone the beginning, said Wesley Bell, the St. Louis County prosecuting attorney. Most of the attacks took spot successful predominantly Black areas of St. Louis marked by vacant tons and boarded homes.

Three days later, a pistillate was recovered with a fatal gunshot coiled to the look astatine a state presumption successful St. Louis. The constabulary followed a humor way from the state station, but the slayer was not located.

About an hr later, the assemblage of different woman, identified arsenic Pamela Abercrombie, 49, was recovered astir fractional a mile from wherever the humor way had ended.

Another 3 days passed earlier the assemblage of a 24-year-old antheral was recovered successful a vacant batch not acold distant from the different killings — changeable with a akin weapon.

“These are a batch of convulsive acts that occurred successful a precise little play of time,” said Lt. Craig Longworth of the St. Louis County Police Department. “These look to beryllium random acts. Why? I can’t springiness an reply to that.”

By Sept. 21, the constabulary announced that the aforesaid weapon had been utilized successful 3 of the caller killings, and they raised a nationalist alarm. Days later, determination was different death: The assemblage of a antheral was recovered successful Ferguson, Mo., with gunshot wounds to the caput and hand.

“The commonality amongst them were handgun casings. We knew they came from the aforesaid handgun,” Richard Quinn, the F.B.I. peculiar cause successful complaint successful St. Louis, told reporters connected Monday. “We besides had a statement from respective witnesses and 1 unfortunate that had highlighted unsocial carnal characteristics of the subject. However, that’s wherever we ran up against a small spot of a wall.”

Detectives got an important pb from the constabulary successful Kansas City, wherever 2 much murders occurred a fewer days isolated successful precocious October and aboriginal November successful the aforesaid high-rise flat building. According to the affidavit, Mr. Reed knew astatine slightest 1 of his victims determination good capable to person exchanged hundreds of messages.

The constabulary determination had surveillance footage of a antheral with a crescent tattoo connected his forehead leaving the scene. Mr. Reed, who has a crescent tattoo connected his forehead, had near his ID astatine the beforehand table of the building, according to the affidavit.

On Friday, the constabulary said, they learned that Mr. Reed had purchased an Amtrak summons to instrumentality to St. Louis from Kansas City. They followed him. He got disconnected a fewer stops abbreviated of his destination, successful Independence, Mo., and erstwhile the authorities detained him, helium had successful his possession a handgun that they believed was linked to each the Missouri transgression scenes.

Mr. Reed was initially arrested connected a national complaint of transporting firearms crossed authorities lines with the intent to perpetrate a felony. The metropolis of St. Louis aboriginal charged him with 2 murders, and the region charged him with 2 more.

Although accusation astir the Kansas killings is elaborate successful the tribunal affidavit, nary charges person been filed successful those killings. No ammunition casings were recovered astatine those scenes, and investigators were awaiting results of DNA tests.

The Kansas City Police Department identified Mr. Reed arsenic a “person of interest” successful the 2 killings.

In questioning, Mr. Reed denied hurting anyone, and said helium had recovered the weapon that was successful his possession, according to the affidavit.

Attempts to scope Mr. Reed’s lawyer and household members successful St. Louis were unsuccessful.

In 2016, Mr. Reed was arrested and charged with mounting occurrence to his family’s house. Prosecutors dropped the arson charges aft household members declined to attest against him, St. Louis County prosecutors said.

In 2017, Mr. Reed sued the nationalist defender’s office, accusing his ain lawyers of “harassment” due to the fact that helium was being directed to taxable to respective intelligence wellness evaluations.

“I informed my lawyer that I americium mentally good and repeatedly garbage to enactment successful the exam,” helium wrote.

He said helium had been traumatized by being exposed to convulsive “people and environment” successful jail.

“My household has near me. I mislaid my job. I can’t wage kid support, which is dependable accumulating,” helium wrote. The lawsuit was dismissed.

Court records besides amusement helium is successful the mediate of a divorce.

Officials said that Friday’s apprehension was the effect of practice betwixt instrumentality enforcement agencies from respective jurisdictions.

“This probe and this apprehension should hopefully supply immoderate assurance to the assemblage that instrumentality enforcement, crossed the board, contempt the many, galore obstacles enactment successful their way implicit the past mates of years, is moving very, precise hard to protect, service and hopefully supply justness for victims of these convulsive crimes,” said Sayler A. Fleming, the U.S. lawyer for the Eastern District of Missouri.

Maj. Ryan Cousins of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said helium hoped the apprehension offered solace.

“I anticipation this apprehension someway brings closure, astatine slightest a small bit, to their families,” helium said.

Eric Berger contributed reporting from St. Louis.