DENVER – A probable cause affidavit released Tuesday is revealing more details into the shooting death of a 39-year-old man outside a Denver 7-Eleven.
David Houston, 25, and an unnamed juvenile are both in custody in regards to the killing of Justin Slyter outside the store at Colfax and Pearl early Sunday morning.
According to the affidavit, 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.
