On the early morning of December 24, 2021, a violent incident unfolded in Wellston, a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri, resulting in the death of 58-year-old Derrick Lee Brookfield. The shooting occurred around 1:31 a.m. near the intersection of Martin Luther King Drive and Ogden Avenue. Brookfield, who was Black, was discovered by responding officers alongside another male victim. Both men had sustained gunshot wounds during the encounter.
While the second victim was transported to a local hospital in critical condition with serious injuries, Brookfield succumbed to his wounds and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The North County Police Cooperative requested the assistance of the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis to lead the homicide investigation. Detectives determined that the double shooting stemmed from an apparent robbery attempt in the early hours of Christmas Eve. The inquiry quickly identified a suspect, leading investigators to focus on 28-year-old Cedric Maxwell Jr., a resident of Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Following his identification as a person of interest, Maxwell was taken into custody for questioning, during which authorities reported that he confessed to the crime.
Prosecutors from the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office subsequently charged Maxwell with a litany of felonies, including Murder in the First Degree, Robbery in the First Degree, Assault in the First Degree, and three counts of Armed Criminal Action. A judge set his bond at $1 million with no ten-percent payment option. At the time of Maxwell's arrest, law enforcement officials noted they were also searching for a second, unidentified accomplice believed to have been involved in the robbery but who was not thought to be remaining in the St. Louis area.
