Michigan murder suspect arrested by Cape officers

Cape Girardeau police found a man wanted for murder when officers arrested him late Tuesday night on suspicion for drug and weapons charges.

Deniquay T. Jefferson, 23, address unknown, is wanted for murder in Flint, Mich., police said.

Jefferson was arrested near the intersection of Broadview Street and Spartech Drive at about 11:22 p.m. after a struggle with police, Cpl. Jason Selzer said.

Police have applied for charges of possession of a controlled substance with intent, possession of a defaced firearm, unlawful use of a weapon and felon in possession of a firearm, he said.

Jefferson was being held at police headquarters as of Wednesday afternoon.

The murder warrant was issued Sept., 25, 2004, said Genesee County, Mich., Prosecutor David Layton, and there are also warrants for felon in possession of a firearm, carrying a concealed weapon and possession of cocaine issued about that time, he said.

Details of the charges were unavailable Wednesday.

Layton said he has contacted Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle about the possibility of waiving the local charges to allow for extradition. Swingle is expected to review the case today.

"We would like to extradite him," Layton said.

Selzer said police were patrolling the area investigating a report of a theft when Jefferson was reportedly spotted riding a girl's bicycle.

When ordered to stop for questioning, Jefferson allegedly attempted to remove something from his pocket. A struggle ensued between Jefferson and Cpl. Jeff Bonham and patrolman Doug Ritter, in which Jefferson was subdued. The officers reportedly recovered a loaded revolver from Jefferson's coat, along with an undisclosed amount of cash and individually packaged marijuana totaling more than 35 grams, Selzer said.

While the suspect reportedly would not give his name to officers after being arrested, his identity was determined within about 30 minutes after his fingerprints were submitted for review in a database using the new Life Scan fingerprint system purchased last year, Selzer said.

The prints went to the Federal Bureau of Investigations where the murder and other warrants surfaced, he said.

"This was a really good job by the officers," Selzer said. "And very fortunate it didn't turn out to be something worse."

carel@semissourian.com

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