Cape Girardeau man last to be charged in Kingshighway robbery

A 33-year-old Cape Girardeau man was arrested late Wednesday, becoming the fourth and final suspect expected to face charges that claim he was among those who severely beat a woman in a bank parking lot before making off with nearly $200 of her money.

David C. Johnson, along with three female co-defendants already in custody, is looking at first-degree robbery and weapons charges that could lock him up for life if he's convicted. Johnson was being held in the Cape Girardeau County Jail on Wednesday on a $100,000 cash-only bond.

Johnson's arraignment is scheduled before Judge Gary Kamp at 11 a.m. Tuesday. Court filings said Wednesday that he has yet to hire a lawyer.

Jessica D. Davis

Shalayla Q. Lowe

Facing identical charges were Jessica D. Davis, 19, Shalayla Q. Lowe, 18, and 17-year-old juvenile Antonia Nashae Taylor. Taylor, who was certified to be prosecuted as an adult, has been misidentified previously based on the name listed in a police probable-cause statement.

The victim told police she had been walking along Kingshighway the afternoon of Jan. 2 as she was making her way back to her hotel. An older-model red four-door pulled alongside her with the four suspects inside, police said. The woman said she was familiar with Johnson, whom she knew as Daylow, who asked her if she wanted a ride. After she declined, she said, the car followed her to the Alliance Bank parking lot.

This time, Johnson got out of the car, the victim said, and insisted that she get in. But as the victim tried to, Taylor pulled out a 6-inch folding knife as one of the women told her that it was not going to be her day.

Davis, who was in the driver's seat, then allegedly "swung" on the victim, police said, and that's when all three of the women jumped her. The victim said she was punched, kicked, had her hair pulled and an earring jerked out. While all that was going on, she described suffering another indignation at the hands of Johnson -- the only male in the group of alleged assailants -- when he reached into her bra and took out the $193 she had.

After he removed the money from one side, the victim said, he searched the other before saying, "I got it, let's go."

The victim was able to make out just two letters and a number on the license plate, but it was enough to track the women to a residence on William Street, where a brief police standoff took place before they were brought in and arrested.

Lowe has requested more time to find a lawyer and has a hearing set for Feb. 25. Taylor, who also is asking for a private attorney, has a preliminary hearing set for three days later to see if she will be bound over to circuit court for trial.

Davis already is at the circuit court level, where she is scheduled to be arraigned before Judge William Syler at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Johnson, like the other adults, has some history of run-ins with the law, including a guilty plea in 2005 for felony drug possession, driving under the influence and operating a car without a valid license, for which he served one year in the county jail. He pleaded guilty that same year to assaulting a law enforcement officer, which resulted in a 30-day jail sentence.

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