Police: Cape Girardeau man pointed AR-style gun at person in store, woman waved handgun

Witnesses say a Cape Girardeau man entered a store with an assault style rifle and threatened a person, prompting the person to fire his weapon at the man while his vehicle was leaving the business, police say. Another woman waved a handgun in the parking lot, police allege.

Jerrod Willis, 29, and Cadesia Willis, 29, are being held in Cape Girardeau County jail on a $100,000 bond with multiple felonies relating to the altercation, which took place Sunday, March 10.

Both Jerrod and Cadesia Willis have been charged with first-degree assault, armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon.

Witnesses told police they saw Jarrod Willis enter the store with an AR-style rifle and yelled at him, "Don't be (expletive) with my brother," according to a probable-cause statement signed by an officer whose name is redacted. The probable-cause statement redacted the name of the store and location of the threat.

The person in the store told police when he was threatened, the witness pulled out his 9 mm handgun. The witness said he fired his handgun when Jarrod Willis pointed his rifle out of his yellow Corvette as he was driving away. The witness called police, according to the probable-cause statement, adding he did not want to pursue charges or testify in court.

Cadesia Willis

Another witness accused Cadesia Willis of trying to pick a fight with the witness, and claimed that Cadesia Willis "pulled out a handgun and was waving it around," according to the probable-cause statement.

Surveillance video captured the incident. Witnesses identified Jarrod and Cadesia Willis as the people in the videos with the weapons. According to the probable-cause statement, the video surveillance "did suggest (the witness) was either getting shot at or at least thought he might have been."

While the probable-cause redactions make it unclear exactly what transpired, it appears Cadesia Willis was wanting to fight one of the witnesses over a relationship conflict.