On a November evening in 2024, 35-year-old Antonio Watson, a male resident of Maplewood, Missouri, was fatally shot in the Princeton Heights neighborhood of St. Louis. The shooting occurred just before 8:45 p.m. in the 4900 block of Bonita Avenue, where responding officers discovered Watson lying in the street with gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The events that culminated in Watson's death began with a tense phone call.
The man who would later be charged in the killing, Torey Paige, was a passenger in a car with a friend and his girlfriend when Watson called the friend. An argument ensued after Watson learned that his friend was with Paige, leading to Watson allegedly threatening to harm everyone in the vehicle. As they approached the 4900 block of Bonita Avenue, where Paige's girlfriend lived, Paige exited the car. Soon after, the remaining occupants of the vehicle heard gunshots and saw muzzle flashes. Authorities later confirmed that Watson was unarmed at the time of the shooting.
Following an investigation, Torey Paige, then 30 years old, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in connection with Watson's death. He was held without bond. Later, when the friend who had been in the car picked Paige up, Paige allegedly threatened to kill them if they 'snitched' on him. In a subsequent plea deal, Paige pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and three counts of witness tampering. In exchange, the initial charge of first-degree murder was reduced and an armed criminal action count was dismissed. A judge sentenced Paige to 12 years in prison. During the court proceedings, Watson's family expressed their profound grief, with one of his sisters stating that the plea deal was not justice for her brother.
