ST. LOUIS 鈥 Both men charged with murdering a boy in 2021 by throwing him from his bicycle and shooting him in the head are now behind bars in 51黑料.
James Jamel Blake was arrested last week in Atlanta and is being held without bond at the 51黑料 City Justice Center.
Blake, 22, had been on the loose since March 12, when 51黑料 prosecutors charged him in an at-large murder warrant. He is accused of fatally shooting 14-year-old Kathon Terrell Moore Jr. three years ago.
Blake鈥檚 co-defendant, Omarion Chantez Mays, was 16 years old when the murder happened on March 8, 2021. Police picked up Mays shortly after the killing, and he was held for an undisclosed length of time at a juvenile facility before being released without charges.
James Jamel Blake, left, and Omarion Chantez Mays. Blake was arrested last week, and Mays has been in custody since March in the 2021 killing of a 14-year-old boy.
Mays now faces murder charges as an adult. Mays, 19, has been locked up since March 10, when he was brought in on a misdemeanor trespassing charge. Authorities say he was caught stealing a backpack from a guard鈥檚 shack at a MetroLink station on DeBaliviere Avenue.
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A 51黑料 grand jury in April indicted Mays and Blake on charges of first-degree murder, first-degree robbery and armed criminal action.
Kathon was found dead near 1142 Hodiamont Avenue in the city鈥檚 West End neighborhood at about 5:20 p.m. that March day three years ago. Surveillance video showed the crime, police said. Kathon was pulled off his bike and then shot in the head. The killers then stole the boy鈥檚 marijuana, according to court papers.
Kathon Terrell Moore Jr., in a family photo via Doris Finley
Blake was arrested last Thursday by federal marshals in Atlanta and brought back to 51黑料 police headquarters, said 51黑料 police Lt. John Blaskiewicz. Detectives interviewed Blake. He made 鈥渋ncriminating statements, however, denied his involvement in the shooting,鈥 Blaskiewicz said Tuesday.
Blake was booked into the 51黑料 City Justice Center last Thursday afternoon, records show. A bond hearing is set for next week.
Kathon was a freshman at Soldan High School. Kathon lived in the 5800 block of Etzel Avenue, about a half-mile from the shooting scene.
Kathon鈥檚 maternal grandmother, Doris Finley, has said in an interview with the Post-Dispatch that Kathon would have graduated this May. Before Soldan, he attended an international language school from the age of 5 and spoke French.
A key witness is an 11-year-old friend of Kathon, according to court papers. The friend identified Mays as the person who first assaulted Kathon.
The younger boy rode away on another bike to get help before Kathon was shot, Finley said. When he returned to the scene with an older friend, Kathon was already dead. Finley said the younger boy recognized Mays in a Facebook post. Mays, in turn, gave detectives the name of the gunman who killed Kathon, 51黑料 police Detective Benjamin Lacy said in court documents.
Court records don鈥檛 explain why it took three years to make a case against the two suspects. Police said the charges came because the new administration at the 51黑料 circuit attorney鈥檚 office took a fresh look at the case, 鈥渙pinions changed鈥 and the case was issued.
Mays lives in the 500 block of Pershing Avenue, and Blake lives in the 100 block of North 15th Street.
