Suspect identified in shooting at Arena Building

A man believed to be from the Chicago area is wanted on felony charges in connection with a shooting Saturday night during a concert at the Arena Building.

Deontae L. Petty, 22, whose last known address was in Bellwood, Ill., was charged Wednesday with two counts of first-degree assault and one count of armed criminal action in connection with the shooting, according to a news release from Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Chris Limbaugh.

Petty was not in custody Wednesday.

Witnesses identified Petty from a photo lineup as the man who was escorted out of the building by security, returned a few minutes later and fired into the crowd attending a Rich Homie Quan concert at the Arena, according to a probable-cause statement filed by detective Sgt. Don Perry of the Cape Girardeau Police Department.

Officers had been dispatched to the area earlier in the evening in reference to a report of someone showing a pistol at the front door, but when they arrived, they found neither the person brandishing a weapon nor the reporting party, Perry wrote.

About 10:20 p.m., an officer west of the Arena Building heard several gunshots and saw several people flee from the building, Perry wrote.

As officers approached, a crowd began to gather near the south entrance to the building, and a witness flagged down an officer to report the shooter had headed south in a black vehicle, Perry wrote.

The witness said security stopped the shooter as he tried to get in the south entrance to the building, but he managed to open the door enough to stick his arm inside and shoot twice into the building, Perry wrote.

About 10:22 p.m., a Missouri state trooper saw a black Pontiac Grand Am speeding away from the parking lot and pursued it east on city streets until it struck a parked car in the 800 block of Themis Street, Perry wrote.

The occupants escaped on foot, but a search of the vehicle turned up a letter from the Internal Revenue Service addressed to Deontae Petty, a Social Security card issued to Deonta L. Petty and a birthday card addressed to "Tae," Perry wrote.

Meanwhile, inside the Arena Building, officers discovered a 29-year-old man with a gunshot wound to his chest, Perry wrote.

While waiting for medical personnel to arrive and tend to the shooting victim, "officers began attempting to clear the building but subjects were uncooperative," Perry wrote.

Officers found bullet casings and bullet fragments inside the building, holes in a wooden door and apparent blood on the floor, Perry wrote.

The victim told officers he had been standing on the main floor near the building's south entrance when he heard several shots and felt "something hot on his chest" but did not immediately realize he had been hit, Perry wrote.

The victim said he did not see the shooter or know what led up to the shooting, Perry wrote.

Medical personnel later told officers the bullet had lodged in the victim's sternum but did not protrude into the sac surrounding his heart, Perry wrote.

A city employee told police he had been in an office near the south foyer when he heard about four gunshots in rapid succession that sounded like an automatic weapon, Perry wrote.

A second victim -- a 20-year-old man -- told officers he was shot in the leg while waiting inside the building for the concert to start, Perry wrote.

A witness working security told police another security officer had made contact with a man who was smoking marijuana inside the building, Perry wrote.

The witness told police the man became belligerent with the other security officer and had to be escorted from the building but returned 10 minutes later and began shooting into the crowd, Perry wrote.

The witness identified Petty from a photo lineup, Perry wrote.

The security officer who escorted Petty from the building told Perry after he escorted Petty from the building, he heard him tell another man to "get the strap" -- common slang for a gun, Perry wrote.

The security officer said he heard gunshots inside the building about five minutes later but could not see the shooter, Perry wrote.

From a photo lineup, the security officer identified Petty as the man he had escorted out, Perry wrote.

epriddy@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

410 Kiwanis Drive, Cape Girardeau, Mo.