A 24-year-old man has been arrested by an off-duty officer in connection with the deadly shootings in St. Louis.
Romello Thomas is charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action, unlawful possession of a firearm, theft of a firearm and unlawful use of a weapon in the death of 27-year-old Kourtney Steed. Police say officers received a call Sunday about a shooting and found Steed wounded in a home.
Steed was one of five people killed over a 24-hour span in St. Louis, starting Saturday night. The other victims were 33-year-old John Watson, 24-year-old Brian Henley, 25-year-old Kevin Brown and 53-year-old Darren Avery.
an off-duty, but uninformed, the police officer from the suburb of Northwoods chased after Thomas and arrested him. Police say a firearm was recovered.
Homicides and other violent crimes are down substantially in St. Louis this year, and the city's police chief believes a strategy of focusing on high-crime areas has paid off.
