Police get suspected killer on weapons charges; mother: 'We have closure'

A 2015 fatal shooting case has been solved and the suspect sentenced to federal prison, but not for the killing, Cape Girardeau police chief Wes Blair said.

Michael T. Anderson

On March 21, U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. sentenced Michael T. Anderson, 25, of Cape Girardeau to 10 years in prison for a federal gun law violation. Blair said that was the maximum sentence allowed for that crime.

The police chief said Anderson early on was a suspect in the Nov. 15, 2015, killing of Quinton Davis Combs, 24, in the 500 block of South Frederick Street, but there was not enough evidence to arrest him.

Anderson, after being charged with the unrelated gun law violation, subsequently confessed to local and federal law enforcement officials he shot Combs, but that he did so in self-defense, Blair said. Police have no evidence to dispute that claim, Blair said.

The victim�s mother, Felice Patton, formerly Roberson, said Monday while Anderson was not convicted of shooting her son, she and her family are glad he is behind bars.

Felice Patton, left, is kissed by her son Willie Brown while a prayer is said for her son Quinton Combs -- who was shot and killed in 2015 -- during a Stop Needless Acts of Violence Please (SNAP) prayer march June 10 in Cape Girardeau. More than 50 people including members of SNAP, Community Counseling Center, Mothers Demand Action and public safety officials came out for the second prayer march. Community members then walked down the streets from Indian Park to Ranney Park stopping at each location where people have died of violence. "If I can just help one person, it's not going to be in vain," Roberson said.Andrew J. Whitaker

�We are thankful he is off the streets of Cape Girardeau,� she said.

But she added she and her family wanted Anderson charged and convicted of shooting her son.

�It is not what we wanted,� she said. Still, she said, �we have closure.�

She credited federal authorities.

�I thank God for the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives),� she said.

Patton said she believes Anderson was involved in other shootings in Cape Girardeau. Blair echoed that view.

�He has been on our radar screen for a lot of shootings,� he said.

�Michael Anderson killed her son, but we have never been able to prove it,� Blair told the Cape Girardeau City Council late last week, only days after informing Patton of the federal sentence.

Blair compared the Anderson case to that of Al Capone, the noted mobster who was convicted on tax evasion charges rather than for the many violent crimes associated with his gang.

Anderson was convicted last year in state court on a drug charge, driving while intoxicated and possessing a loaded firearm. He was placed on five years supervised probation Sept. 1, 2017. Twenty days later, a federal grand jury indicted Anderson on a gun violation.

The indictment charged Anderson with seeking to buy a Glock .40 caliber pistol from Academy Sports on July 6, 2017. Anderson �made a false and fictitious statement� he was not facing a criminal charge when, in fact, he had been charged with possession of a controlled substance, according to the indictment.

Anderson was arrested on the drug charge in March 2017 and on the other state charges in August 2017, according to circuit court records.

On Dec. 13, 2017, Anderson pleaded guilty to the gun charge in federal court in Cape Girardeau as part of a plea agreement, federal court records show.

Patton said she and her family learned of the prison sentence for Anderson during a meeting with the police chief and other Cape Girardeau officers April 24 at the police station. Patton said she was unaware of the federal prosecution and conviction until that meeting.

Patton called the entire case �frustrating,� in part because she said Anderson was a suspect who for too long was allowed to walk the streets of Cape Girardeau.

Patton repeatedly has said there were as many as 60 people who may have witnessed the shooting, but none would come forward.

�I know people were afraid of him,� she said.

Blair said there is no statute of limitations on murder. If witnesses come forward, Anderson could still be charged in connection with the fatal shooting of Combs, he said.

Fueled by her grief, Patton helped found Stop Needless Acts of Violence, Please, or SNAP, to address violence in the community and encourage better cooperation between residents and police. The group has held prayer marches and monthly meetings for the past two years and reached out to city leaders and law enforcement.

While there is finally closure in her case, Patton said she will continue her volunteer efforts to reduce violence in south Cape Girardeau and the community as a whole.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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