ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – Charges have been upgraded against a man who is accused of shooting another man who tripped on a grill and fell into his apartment earlier this month.
The prosecutor’s office said they believe they have enough evidence to upgrade the charge against Thomas Clement from second-degree murder to first-degree murder.
According to St. Louis County police, 31-year-old Larry Neal Jr., of Florissant, was walking in an apartment breezeway, tripped on a barbecue grill and fell into the door of an apartment where Clement was standing. Clement then walked away and went up the stairs and returned to the door with a gun in his hand.
Neal Jr. was walking up the stairs when Clement flourished his gun at him. Neal Jr. then walked back down the stairs and reached the landing of the stairwell when Clement started shooting at him. Police said approximately 11 shots were fired by Clement and Neal Jr. did not have a weapon.
Police said they believe Clement is a danger to the community due to the nature of the charges.
Detectives from the St. Louis County Police Department’s Bureau of Crimes Against Persons are conducting the investigation.
