18-year-old shoots man 15 times, hides body inside an air mattress, Missouri cops say

A rolled-up air mattress concealed the body of a 23-year-old man who was shot repeatedly inside a Missouri home, police said.

The accused shooter, 18-year-old Jackson Pierce, was charged with second-degree murder following the Monday, Jan. 8, incident in St. Peters, about 30 miles northwest of St. Louis.

St. Peters police identified the victim as 23-year-old Dalton Coleman. Pierce told a witness Coleman had been acting “erratic” while they were inside the home, according to a probable cause statement.

The witness, who was speaking on the phone with Pierce, told the 18-year-old to distance himself from Coleman and take with him a gun that was stored in a kitchen cabinet, police said.

Minutes later, the witness received another call from Pierce, who said he had shot and killed Coleman, according to the court documents.

Police were called to the home and Pierce was taken into custody. While being interviewed, he admitted to there being a body inside the residence, police said.

Officers searched the home and found a “rolled up air mattress that had been tied tightly and wrapped with a piece of an electrical cord,” police said in the probable cause statement. Inside the mattress was the body of Coleman, who had a garbage bag over his head.

Pierce said the shooting happened as Pierce and a juvenile were in a bedroom, police said. Coleman forced his way inside “and a physical altercation took place.”

When Pierce saw Coleman look at the gun on the bedside table, he grabbed it and began firing at the victim, according to the court documents.

“Pierce stated the first shot hit (Coleman) in the abdomen and he did not go down,” police said. “Pierce stated that he continued to fire, 14 times until the gun was empty, and (Coleman) did not fall to the ground until the last shot was fired.”

Coleman was shot 15 times in the abdomen, hand and face, police said.

Police announced Pierce was charged with second-degree murder, armed criminal action and tampering with physical evidence. He was jailed on a $1 million bond.

The juvenile accused of helping Pierce conceal the body is also facing charges, police said.

This story was originally published January 10, 2024 at 8:39 AM with the headline "18-year-old shoots man 15 times, hides body inside an air mattress, Missouri cops say."