$2,500 reward for tips to arrest a most wanted suspect in Wichita drug deal murder

Crime Stoppers has raised the reward for tips leading to the arrest of a Wichita murder suspect on the sheriff’s most wanted list.

Jakob Oneil Cuble is wanted on charges of first-degree murder and aggravated robbery.

He has already been charged in Sedgwick County District Court, along with Malcolm Ganther and Nathaniel Saunders. Ganther and Saunders are currently being held in the Sedgwick County jail.

The charges are connected to the May 20, 2020, shooting and later death of Marcus Sain.

Wednesday’s Crime Stoppers news release, coming one day before the anniversary of the shooting, was the first time Wichita police had publicly identified Cuble as a suspect. However, he was added to the Top Ten Most Wanted list in July.

The 17-year-old Sain was shot and killed during a botched drug deal at the Fox Run Apartments parking lot near Harry and Webb, police have said. Court records show the suspects are accused of being involved in buying and selling marijuana, during which the drug transaction turning into a robbery and then a shooting.

The court has declined to release a police affidavit detailing the case, noting the ongoing investigation.

Criminal complaints allege that criminal actions by Ganther, Saunders and Cuble lead to the death of Sain. Prosecutors allege that Ganther was distributing marijuana when Cuble and Sain tried to rob him at gunpoint, then Saunders, who was Ganther’s lookout, shot Cuble and Sain.

Police have said that officers responding to the scene found Sain in the parking lot. He was taken to a hospital, where, he died the next day. A second person — apparently Cuble — showed up at a hospital as a walk-in shooting victim. He was treated and released.

The three suspects were identified by detectives “thanks to information from the public.” Now, “we are once again asking for the publics help on this case,” said Wichita police Officer Trevor Macy, the Crime Stoppers coordinator.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is eligible to receive a reward through Crime Stoppers by calling the anonymous tip line at 316-267-2111. Information leading to an arrest is eligible for a reward up to $2,500. That amount is up from the $1,000 that was offered in July when Cuble was first listed on the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office most wanted list.

This story was originally published May 19, 2021 at 6:39 PM.