Cedar Rapids police ask homicide witnesses to come forward

CEDAR RAPIDS - Cedar Rapids Police Chief Wayne Jerman said the homicide of a Marion man outside a house party Saturday is solvable, but police need more witnesses to come forward.

On Thursday, Jerman said investigators believe there were 40 to 50 people who saw 28-year-old Marcus K. McCaskill gunned down in the 700 block of 15th Street SE at approximately 3 a.m. Saturday. To date, investigators have spoken with more than 30 witnesses.

'We believe very strongly that there are other people that were present and saw what happened,” Jerman said. 'They not only saw what occurred, they have information that will aid these investigators.”

Jerman added, 'This is definitely a solvable case. It can be solved with the public's cooperation.”

Police said the shooting occurred after an argument started inside a house party and spilled out into the street.

Multiple shots were fired, but Jerman said police were not ready to confirm if they came from one or more guns.

McCaskill, the only person police are aware of who suffered injuries in the shooting, was transported to a hospital with life-threatening injuries. McCaskill died Wednesday morning.

Jerman said investigators have yet to develop a suspect.

'We've gotten a lot of information and facts from a number of individuals we've interviewed,” he said. 'We strongly believe some other individuals that have not come forward know more ... ‘More' is who actually was in possession of the gun, pulling the trigger. That's information we'd love to know about.”

Investigations like this are like a puzzle, Jerman said. He believes people who have not come forward may have pieces to that puzzle that will help investigators complete it and make an arrest.

'A lot of cases depend on someone coming forward and providing us with that key piece of information that can lock in the other pieces or link the other pieces to this puzzle,” he said. 'We believe strongly there is someone - at least one, probably more - who saw and or know who was responsible for this shooting.”

Although the shooting occurred during an argument, Jerman said investigators do not yet know what led to that argument and if it was part of some ongoing dispute.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Cedar Rapids Police Department or Linn County Crime Stoppers.