Cedar Rapids man charged in fatal shooting outside bar

CEDAR RAPIDS — A Cedar Rapids man who was extradited from Indiana was charged Wednesday with fatally shooting a man June 11 outside a Cedar Rapids bar.

During his initial appearance, Denzel Demarco Wilson, 23, was charged with first-degree murder, going armed with intent, possession of a firearm by a felon — all felonies — and use of a dangerous weapon in the commission of a crime, an aggravated misdemeanor.

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Sixth Judicial Associate District Judge Angie Johnston ordered a $1 million cash-only bail for Wilson during the hearing.

Wilson is accused of fatally shooting Kenyauta Vesey-Keith, 23, who was found on the ground outside of the main entrance of Poppa n Tommyz, a bar and restaurant at 1323 First Ave. SE, according to a criminal complaint. Vesey-Keith had multiple gunshot injuries and later died at a hospital.

Witnesses at the scene identified the shooter as Wilson and said they saw him shoot Vesey-Keith multiple times at point-blank range as he walked by. Surveillance video taken from the outside of the bar corroborated the witnesses’ statements and showed Wilson shooting Vesey-Keith at close range, the complaint states.

Wilson has multiple convictions that “qualify him as a felon,” according to the complaint.

U.S. marshals arrested Wilson, already on probation for a gun conviction, in Indiana. Investigators with the Cedar Rapids Police Department contacted the Northern Iowa Fugitive Task Force on June 15 to request assistance in locating Wilson.

Task force officers began to follow up on leads throughout Cedar Rapids, and then information developed indicating that Wilson had fled the state. Officials began coordinating with multiple U.S. marshal fugitive task forces outside of Iowa.

In early August, U.S. marshals determined a likely location for Wilson and began coordinating with the U.S. Marshals Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force in Northern Indiana. The task force narrowed its search to an address in Gary, Ind., and arrested Wilson there on Aug. 7.

Vesey-Keith was acquitted in 2018 of first-degree murder and other charges related to a 2016 street fight involving dozens of people. Vesey-Keith, who was 16 at the time, was accused of fatally shooting Brandon Johnson, 21.

Police said the street fight, on March 19, 2016, involved dozens of people fighting in the middle of the 1100 block of Maplewood Drive NE. Johnson was killed and Deaveon Gaudlin, who was 16 at the time, was seriously injured.

During his trial, Vesey-Keith argued he fired a gun in self-defense. Evidence showed he had previous issues with Johnson and others before the street melee.

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