On October 19, 2024, a dispute over the preparation of a pizza at a Milwaukee convenience store tragically escalated, resulting in the death of 26-year-old Jamil I. Owais. A White male, Owais was working as a cashier at Action Food and Liquor, a business owned by his family, when the fatal encounter occurred shortly before noon. The incident began when a customer, later identified as 38-year-old Charles Leggett, expressed his dissatisfaction with how his pizza was being made, specifically
complaining that the employee preparing it was not wearing gloves.
The disagreement between Leggett and Owais quickly intensified into a heated argument. Surveillance footage from the store captured the verbal altercation before Leggett allegedly drew a handgun and fired a single shot into Owais's chest. Another employee who heard the argument and the gunshot discovered Owais unresponsive behind the counter and immediately called 911. Despite the efforts of emergency responders, Jamil I. Owais was pronounced dead at the scene. He was a Palestinian immigrant who had come to the United States in 2013 and was the father of a six-month-old daughter. On the day of the shooting, he was covering a shift for his brother.
Following the shooting, the suspect fled the scene in a black Nissan Sentra. Milwaukee police investigators utilized surveillance footage and license plate data to track down the vehicle, which led them to an apartment on West Juneau Avenue where they arrested Charles Leggett later that same day. During questioning, Leggett admitted to shooting Owais, stating that he became angry after his complaint about the unsanitary food preparation was dismissed. He claimed he did not see a weapon on Owais during their confrontation. Authorities recovered a 9mm bullet casing at the scene and later found a gun linked to Leggett. Leggett, a convicted felon, has been charged with first-degree reckless homicide and possession of a firearm by a felon. He was being held in the Milwaukee County Jail on a $200,000 bond.
