Kansas City man charged with murder in October shooting at North Town Fork Creek home
A Kansas City man is accused of murder in the killing of another man found shot to death inside a North Town Fork Creek neighborhood residence last month.
Jackson County prosecutors on Wednesday charged Arnette R. Taylor Jr., 38, with second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the killing of Dennis Jones, 42. As of Thursday, Taylor was being held in the county jail on a $150,000 bond.
On Oct. 13, around 2:30 a.m., Kansas City police officers responded to a reported medical call for a man found shot inside a residence in the 5200 block of College Avenue. Jones was found unresponsive inside a front room doorway and declared dead at the scene.
Detectives and crime scene investigators discovered an empty firearm holster on Jones’ belt loop and six spent shell casings in the living room area.
A neighbor reported hearing gunshots in the area about 30 minutes earlier but did not think anything of it at first, according to a probable cause affidavit prepared by a Kansas City detective. Then a resident of the area, described as a longtime girlfriend of Jones, ran over to the neighbor saying Jones needed help and they called 911, the affidavit states.
Witnesses told detectives a person known only as “Boo” had come over around midnight to hang out with Jones and three other people. At one point, they said, “Boo” made romantic advances toward a woman there, making her uncomfortable, and the group left as Jones stayed behind.
Later on in the morning, Jones’ girlfriend told detectives she returned to find him shot.
Detectives were told “Boo” had a noticeable limp. Surveillance cameras from the block showed a person of that description coming and going at the residence, according to court documents. An audio recording picked up the sound of six gunshots a few minutes after Jones was reportedly left alone with the person known as “Boo.”
Further surveillance video was obtained from a gas station where Jones and “Boo” had gone to pick up a two-liter of pop and a pastry. A still photograph of the shooting suspect from the surveillance footage was recognized by a witness as “Boo,” the affidavit says.
Taylor was also connected to the “Boo” nickname through a 2010 investigative file that listed him as having that alias, the affidavit says. It led investigators to a Facebook page for Taylor that detectives determined had photographs of a person resembling the one seen on surveillance cameras.
Cell phone records reviewed by detectives also came back with a listed phone number that was linked to Taylor, the affidavit says. A device with that phone number was collected as evidence after being found on Taylor during his arrest by tactical officers on Tuesday.
A preliminary analysis of the phone’s data showed the device was at the residence when Jones was killed, authorities allege.
During a police interview Wednesday, Taylor denied knowing Jones or being at the residence on the night of the killing, according to court documents. He requested a lawyer when told detectives were investigating Jones’ homicide.
Taylor made his initial appearance in Jackson County Circuit Court on Thursday. Online court records did not list a defense attorney representing him in the case.
