In the early morning hours of September 28, 2024, a violent tragedy unfolded at a residence in Hazelwood, Missouri, claiming the life of Treon Johnathan Jones, an 18-year-old Black male. The incident occurred in the 200 block of Connolly Drive, where Jones was located in a bedroom with a female companion. According to investigators, the events were precipitated by a domestic dispute involving the woman's boyfriend, Bryce Ellis.
Ellis allegedly utilized a tracking feature on the woman's cellphone to locate her whereabouts, leading him to the Hazelwood home around 5:00 a.m.
Upon arriving at the residence, Ellis reportedly broke into the home and confronted Jones and the woman while they were in bed. A physical struggle ensued between the two men, during which Ellis produced a firearm. The woman fled the room during the altercation and later reported hearing three gunshots fired. Authorities determined that two of the bullets struck Jones, fatally wounding him, while a third shot struck the bed. Following the shooting, Ellis and the woman left the scene together in a rideshare vehicle, traveling first to Ellis's mother's home. When his mother learned of the incident, she demanded they leave, and Ellis subsequently returned to his own residence in East St. Louis.
The crime was not immediately reported to local law enforcement by those present. Instead, the woman contacted her mother, who was living out of state, to explain what had happened. Her mother then called the police around 8:00 a.m. to report the shooting. Officers responded to the home on Connolly Drive and discovered Jones deceased in the bedroom from his injuries.
Following an investigation into the timeline and cell phone data, which placed Ellis at the scene for approximately five minutes, police took Bryce Ellis into custody. He was subsequently charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action, and first-degree burglary in connection with Jones's death. The investigation highlighted that the confrontation was a direct result of the suspect tracking his girlfriend to the victim's location, escalating a personal conflict into a fatal shooting.
