SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — The search for the second suspect of a shooting that took the life of an 18-year-old in Springfield on April 17 is underway.
Xavier Nashawn Moore, 21, of Springfield, is charged with six felonies:
- First-degree murder.
- First-degree assault.
- Discharging a firearm at or from a motor vehicle.
- Three counts of armed criminal action.
On April 17, 18-year-old Lavelle C. Rose was shot and killed by a shooter while he and a female were in a vehicle at the intersection of Forest Avenue and Calhoun Street.
Officers arrested Justin Bartels, 21, in connection to the murder. Bartels was charged with four felonies, including second-degree murder.
According to court documents, the female victim said that she and Rose were on their way to the store when they saw a man wearing a balaclava-style mask walking in the same direction as their vehicle. At the intersection, a truck pulled up and blocked the vehicle she and Rose were in. The man walking on the sidewalk approached their vehicle, fired several shots and then ran to the truck.
Officers used the FLOCK system to track the truck and connect it to a dealership in Eldon. Then, they found out when it was sold and called the owner of the dealership. The owner told police who they sold it to and that the person who purchased it requested the title to be sent to St. Louis. Five hours after the shooting, St. Louis officers checked the residence the title was sent to and saw the truck was there.
Detectives got a warrant for the St. Louis apartment and found it was vacant. They found an empty gun box from a Springfield store and two empty magazines inside the apartment. The owner of the truck was found to also own a red Chevrolet Camaro. Using the Flock system again, it was found the the Camaro was traveling east on Springfield’s Kearney Street on April 18, the day after the shooting.
The Camaro was pulled over and the owner was the only person inside. He was taken to the Springfield police headquarters. Police found evidence that he had been at Xavier Moore’s home before the murder.
Police obtained motion-activated surveillance from a neighbor of Moore. At 5:05 p.m. the day of the murder, the owner of the Camaro, the man wearing a balaclava-style mask, and several others were should walking between a vehicle and Moore’s home. Earlier that day, at 12:15 p.m., the Camaro owner and the man wearing the mask were showed carrying groceries to Moore’s home.
Moore was contacted by the police at the home for an undisclosed reason on April 10. On April 18, the day after the murder, Springfield police searched the home and found Moore’s property.
On April 25, the Camaro owner — Bartels — admitted that he was the driver of the getaway truck on the night of the murder. He told police he dropped Moore off near the victim’s residence after Moore told him to. Bartels said Moore stated he wanted to beat someone up at the residence. Bartels then drove to the intersection to wait for Moore.
Moore allegedly asked Bartels to get rid of the gun from the murder. The gun was found at Bartels’ apartment.
Bartels said that Moore fled the area after the murder with his girlfriend and that he had probably left the state. Moore’s girlfriend was reported missing on April 22. Both Moore and the girlfriend selected their social media accounts and turned off their cell phones.
According to Springfield police, the search for Moore is ongoing.
Anyone with information about Moore or the night of the shooting can give the Springfield police a call at 417-864-1810 or make an anonymous tip by calling Crime Stoppers at 417-869-8477.
