Sikeston man is murdered

SIKESTON -- After over two years without a murder within city limits, the Sikeston Department of Public Safety now has three suspects in custody in connection with a fatal shooting.

Larrell C. Taylor, 25, of Sikeston died at 8:56 p.m. Thursday from a single gunshot to the left side of the neck.

According to authorities, Kena Denard Hatcher, 20, Johnnie Nelson Phiffer, 18, and Thomas Elery, 19, all of Sikeston, are in custody. The suspects are being charged with first degree murder, two counts of armed criminal action, and first degree assault, according to Scott County Prosecutor Paul Boyd.

Phiffer was arrested approximately 10-15 minutes after the shooting in a vehicle that was described by witnesses who were at the scene.

Hatcher turned himself in at 7:30 a.m. this morning. Elery was arrested at 10 a.m. today on the 300 block of Luther Street using information gathered during the initial investigation.

Kena Hatcher

Kena Hatcher

According to the DPS incident report, the shooting occurred at approximately 7:16 p.m. in the alley near 406 Dorothy St. and the 200 block of Ruth Street.

"We believe Mr. Taylor was with his brother walking down street when three suspects popped out from behind a dumpster," Boyd said.

Authorities believe a single shot was fired although the weapon type has not yet been determined.

Floodlight units were called to the scene and DPS command staff, detectives and the major case squad worked the scene until around 6 a.m. today.

"I think that the Major Case Squad did a great job of getting the facts as quickly and fairly as possible," Boyd said.

Johnnie Phiffer

Johnnie Phiffer

"It just proves again how effective cooperation between agencies is," said Sikeston DPS Director Drew Juden. "There was a lot of hard work by a lot of people."

Juden acknowledged that the first 24-48 hours in a murder investigation are critical. He said that in those critical hours you have to dedicate all available resources and "hope you end up with a positive result."