Man who fled to Iowa, after authorities say he killed St. Paul man, charged with second-degree murder
Jul. 15—A Maplewood man has been charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of a St. Paul man in what authorities believe was a drug deal gone wrong.
Brian Devon Booth, 20, is suspected of fatally shooting Kiefer M. Morgan, 30, on July 6 in Morgan's home as the two haggled over the sale of a bag of marijuana, according to the criminal complaint. Morgan's 1-year-old was in the room when he was shot and his other children, ages 3 and 4, were in another room, according to his fiancée.
Booth fled to Iowa, where he was arrested on July 8 and extradited back to Minnesota.
According to the criminal complaint, about 6:45 p.m. on July 6, police responded to a 911 call at 1140 Pacific St. in the Dayton's Bluff neighborhood on a report of a man being shot. They found Morgan dead. He had been shot five times — twice in the chest and once in the stomach, hand and arm.
Morgan's fiancée's mother, who was not named in the complaint, told police that she had just returned from the laundry mat when she saw Morgan talking to a man in the kitchen. Three men had come to the house to buy marijuana, according to the complaint, but Morgan had only let one inside.
The mother said that the man was making her very nervous and she could tell something was wrong, the complaint said. She described him as "looking uncomfortable" and being "fidgety."
As she went toward the living room, the two males outside began kicking the exterior door. She grabbed a chair and tried to block the door. She held the door "with all her might" but said the door was "coming down." She said she heard gunshots and then the door was kicked all the way open. She ran to the children and got them into the back bedroom, the complaint states.
Police were able to trace the shooting to Booth because he had prior arrests and his phone number was on file, the complaint said. The phone number matched the number of the phone of the man who allegedly shot Morgan.
Morgan's fiancée was able to pick Booth out of a police lineup, the complaint said. Phone records also put Booth's phone at the scene of the crime.
On July 7, using a warrant, police searched Booth's house and found .40-caliber rounds of ammunition, among other items.
Booth has a theft conviction from July 16, 2000; a theft conviction for stealing a purse and car Jan. 2, 2019; pending charges for stealing a car Feb. 3, 2020; and possessing a firearm and stealing credit cards June 2.
Booth's record shows that he and several other juveniles were implicated in multiple purse snatchings in St. Paul. The group would grab a woman's purse, use the credit cards to buy electronics and sometimes return with the car keys to steal the woman's car.
His next court appearance will be held remotely July 30.
