In the afternoon hours of February 28, 2024, a dispute over money and sunglasses would tragically cut short the life of 19-year-old Keonte Watts, a Black / African American male from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Keonte, described by his family as a friendly and sociable young man who loved being around people, was at a friend's house near 15th and Center Streets when the violence erupted.
His mother, Jazzsmen Watts, had spoken to him on the phone just minutes before the shooting, never imagining it would be their last conversation.
Around 3:40 p.m., shots were fired into the residence from the outside. The bullets tore through the building's exterior, striking interior walls and doors. One of those bullets found Keonte in an upstairs bedroom, inflicting a fatal wound. When the sound of gunfire, which one witness described as coming from an automatic weapon, subsided, Keonte was found unresponsive on the bedroom floor. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The investigation into Keonte's death quickly pointed to 30-year-old Dareon McCarver, also known as "Pooh". Witnesses informed detectives that McCarver had been at the house the previous day and had become angry, claiming someone had stolen his money and sunglasses. He allegedly threatened to return and "shoot up the house" if his property was not returned. Following through on his threat, McCarver is accused of being the individual who fired into the home, ending Keonte's life.
Based on witness statements, police identified a possible suspect vehicle, a gray Mercury. The car was discovered illegally parked on private property more than a mile from the shooting scene on March 2. A woman who called to have the vehicle towed mentioned that a Black man with "gold teeth" had been inside. This description matched McCarver. Subsequently, Dareon McCarver was arrested and charged with first-degree reckless homicide and possession of a firearm by a felon. He is being held in the Milwaukee County Jail on a $150,000 cash bond as the legal proceedings continue, leaving a grieving family to seek justice for a life taken too soon.
