DENVER – Two more suspects are being sought in connection with the deadly shooting of a man outside a Denver 7-Eleven store in Denver, police said Wednesday.
Ru Shawn Bykei Wharton, 41 – pictured below – is wanted for first-degree murder in the deadly shooting of Justin Slyter outside the store on Colfax Avenue and Pearl Street early Sunday morning.
Wharton is 6-feet-tall and weighs 220 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes.
Ru Shawn Bykei Wharton. (Mugshot courtesy: Denver Police Department)
Police are also looking for a fourth suspect. Details about the suspect were not released by investigators.
David Houston, 25, and an unnamed juvenile were both taken into police custody on Monday.
Houston was booked on investigation of first-degree murder, aggravated robbery with a weapon with intent to kill/wound, and a parole violation. The charges the juvenile faces are unknown.
Affidavit reveals more details of deadly shooting
According to an affidavit obtained by Denver7, Slyter was shot as he tried to retrieve a wallet the suspect and others allegedly stole from him as the victim was engaged in an altercation with a separate individual in front of the 7-Eleven store.
Surveillance video puts the suspect and two other men inside the convenience store minutes before the shooting, according to the affidavit.
The three men then exit the store and see the victim in an altercation with a heavy-set man who appeared to be a panhandler.
The three suspects join in the fight and steal the victim’s wallet, the affidavit said. The suspects then get into a car but are then confronted by the victim. Shots rang out, and the car takes off, police say in the affidavit.
Houston turned himself into police after his mother saw news coverage of the event, according to the affidavit. He admitted to police that he was in the car but denies pulling the trigger. Houston said he did not know the names of the other two men in the car.
A GoFundMe page created for Slyter says he had a wife and young son and was killed “in a random, tragic, senseless act.” He was a member of the local electricians’ union, IBEW Local 111.
Houston has a history of controlled substance possession and distribution charges and convictions in Colorado. He was wearing GPS-tracking ankle bracelet at the time of his arrest.
Denver police ask that you call 911 if you see the suspect or know of his whereabouts.
