In a tragic turn of events stemming from a planned robbery, 25-year-old Marquell L. Bailey, a male resident of Uniontown, Pennsylvania, lost his life on the evening of November 27, 2017. The fatal encounter unfolded in a vacant apartment in the Pershing Court housing complex, where Bailey and several accomplices had arranged to meet a man under the pretense of a drug transaction.
Bailey, in the company of Megan Bowlen, Joel Grooms, and Miranda Engle, intended to purchase cocaine from Derek Lee Royster, a 29-year-old from Uniontown. However, the plan was to rob Royster. The situation escalated when Bailey allegedly punched Royster, prompting Royster to draw a firearm. Royster fired, striking Bailey once in the chest. He also fired at another individual as people scattered. Bailey was found outside the apartment and was transported to Uniontown Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Following the shooting, an investigation led to charges against all involved. The alleged shooter, Derek Lee Royster, was charged with criminal homicide, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, and drug possession with intent to deliver. After initially fleeing the scene, Royster was apprehended a few days later in Wilkinsburg. Bailey's accomplices, Megan Bowlen, Joel Grooms, and Miranda Engle, also faced charges, including robbery and homicide, for their roles in the planned heist that led to Bailey's death. Another individual, Davin M. Fitzgerald, was also implicated as being part of the group intending to rob Royster.
During Derek Lee Royster's subsequent trial for criminal homicide in March 2020, both Megan Bowlen and Miranda Engle testified against him. They admitted to their participation in the plan to rob Royster, which had been orchestrated under the guise of a drug deal. Their testimony provided an inside account of the events that culminated in the fatal shooting of Marquell Bailey. Both women had pleaded guilty to reduced charges for their cooperation.
