Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O'Malley is urging the public to come forward with details on a missing 17-year-old boy who allegedly shot and killed another teen boy in September.
On Sept. 19, Royal King drove to the 185th Deli, where he shot 17-year-old Jahari Stegall in the back of the head after he had just walked in, according to O'Malley.
Surveillance video shown during a press conference on Wednesday showed King walking inside the deli for a few minutes and walking back out with a handgun in his left hand.
You can watch the surveillance video in the player below:
In the video, Stegall is seen walking up to the deli, having a quick verbal exchange with King, and when he walked inside, King turned around and shot him.
"It is one of the most coldhearted, treacherous, cowardly homicides I have seen in my 10 years as prosecutor," O'Malley said.
After the shooting, King got into the stolen vehicle that he had arrived in and fled. O'Malley said the vehicle was recovered later that same day near King's house.
Stegall was pronounced dead on the scene by Cleveland EMS.
"I asked myself today, 'What did he do to deserve the death penalty?'" Councilman Mike Polensek said during the press conference. "You saw in the video, he did nothing, he did nothing. He was going to school, he was a responsible young man living in the Glenville Neighborhood."
O'Malley said that law enforcement does not typically hold press conferences to ask for the public's help locating a suspect, but he noted that law enforcement has been searching for King for three weeks.
On Sept. 23, King was indicted on the following charges:
- One count of aggravated murder
- Two counts of murder
- Two counts of felonious assault
- One count of improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle
- One count of carrying a concealed weapon
"I want justice for this young man, I want justice for his family, and I want justice for the community," Polensek said.
Anyone with information regarding King's whereabouts is asked to contact the U.S. Marshals at 1-866-4WANTED.
