On October 10, 2022, 16-year-old Antwan C. Watson was found lying on the ground in an alley on the 1000 block of York Avenue in Saint Paul, Minnesota, with multiple gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The incident marked the 28th homicide investigation in Saint Paul for the year. Watson was a student at Harding High School.
The investigation quickly led to the arrest of another 16-year-old boy from Saint Paul.
The suspect was apprehended on October 11, 2022, near 5th Street East and Minnesota Street in downtown Saint Paul. When officers took the teenager into custody, they recovered a loaded 9mm handgun from his front waistband. The suspect initially provided several different statements to the police before admitting that he shot Watson. According to court documents, the suspect claimed that he grabbed the gun from Watson's pants and struggled with him for the weapon before the shooting occurred.
The Ramsey County Attorney's Office filed a petition in juvenile court to charge the 16-year-old suspect with two counts of second-degree murder: one with intent, not premeditated, and the other without intent, while committing a felony. The attorney's office also filed a motion to have the case moved to adult court. A juvenile court judge will determine if the case should be transferred from juvenile to adult court.
In a subsequent development, J'Veon J. Brown, another teenager from Saint Paul, agreed to plead guilty to second-degree unintentional murder in connection with Watson's death. Brown's plea agreement included a sentence of nearly 11 years in prison.
