KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Knob Noster, Missouri, man was charged Jan. 30 for his part in an April 2024 murder.
Sye’e Thomas faces second-degree murder and armed criminal action charges.
Kansas City, Missouri, police were called around 10:40 p.m. April 12, 2024, to the 1800 block of Hardesty Avenue on reports of a shooting.
Pablo Rodriguez was located on the ground near a white Dodge Grand Caravan. He was transported to an area hospital where he died days later.
Surveillance footage from the area showed a blue four-door sedan was parked in the area around 9:30 p.m. that night. It left and returned about 20 minutes later.
Around 10:30 p.m., Thomas appeared to exit the vehicle, walk out of the camera’s view and return to enter the front passenger seat.
Just a few minutes later, the white Dodge Grand Caravan parked about three structures south of the sedan.
Once the driver of the Dodge had exited and was walking up the stairs of a nearby residence, Thomas left the sedan and approached the man, per court documents.
Thomas allegedly pulled a gun on the man, demanding money and threatening his life.
While forcing the man down the steps, Rodriguez opened the door of the Dodge and yelled at Thomas.
Thomas then shot Rodriguez and ran to the sedan. The victim retrieved a gun from the Dodge and shot at Thomas as he fled, court documents stated.
Around 1 a.m., police were called to an apartment near Myrtle Avenue and E. 94th Terrace on a reported prowler.
A woman told officers Thomas was in the parking lot while the two argued over text. He threatened to "shoot up the place" in one message, the woman said.
When police made contact with Thomas, he said he did not have a girlfriend and was delivering DoorDash. However, officers saw a firearm in his lap.
Thomas complied with officers at first, but a struggle ensued when police attempted to secure the firearm, per court documents.
Thomas ended up reversing into a parked vehicle and fleeing the scene.
Around 6:30 a.m., the vehicle was involved in an accident at Emanuel Cleaver II and Paseo Boulevard.
Officers noted a bullet hole in the trunk lid and heavy damage from the accent.
When approached by police, Thomas provided a fake name. He then requested he be dropped off at the apartment near Myrtle Avenue and E. 94th Terrace.
Police were called back to the apartment around 7:30 a.m. by the woman who said Thomas was threatening her and trying to break in. She said one of his text messages claimed he was not doing well after he "shot three [people] up."
Thomas, who was walking near the apartment, was arrested on municipal warrants.
"Based on the matching vehicle and clothing descriptions from the homicide, accident, Myrtle Avenue address, and the statements made by Thomas via text message … detectives applied for a search warrant to seize the cellular device located in Thomas’ property," according to court documents.
Digital forensic examiners determined his phone was in the area of the homicide less than an hour before the shooting and left within minutes after. Detectives also found the phone used a nearby cell tower in the area of the homicide at the time it occurred.
Additionally, the bullet fragments recovered from the blue sedan matched those shot by the victim as Thomas fled the homicide scene.
Thomas was arrested Jan. 29 and placed on a 24-hour hold for homicide.
He told investigators he was visiting from out of town and was borrowing the car from someone else. He also said he was in a fight with his wife, who he has separated from, and his girlfriend.
When asked about the incident where he struggled with officers over a firearm and fled, he said he left because he was on probation and wasn’t supposed to be in Missouri. He denied having a gun.
Thomas also denied knowing where Hardesty Avenue is and said the robbery had nothing to do with him before requesting a lawyer.
He is currently being held at the Jackson County Detention Center on no bond. A bond review hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 6.
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